Naruto Shippuden -H-
by zachwebbex
Summary: Two years have passed since the end of the Fourth Shinobi World War. Naruto and Hinata have been married and are about to start a life together, however an unprecedented foe is about to make themselves seen to the entire shinobi world. The Allied Shinobi Forces will have to find a new, unique way to deal with the conflict that is about to rise.
1. The Relations of Villages As of Now

Two years have passed since the Fourth Shinobi World War. The events of this amazing conflict saw the five great shinobi villages unite to overcome the evil Kaguya Otsutsuki and Madara Uchiha.

With the recent turn of events after Toneri Otsutsuki vowed to never harm the earth again, everything returned to normal for all of the shinobi everywhere... Naruto Uzumaki is renowned as the hero who saved the world from the Infinite Tsukoyomi and the moon, and as a loyal husband to his wife, Hinata Hyuga.

With events settling down, Naruto and Hinata go on a vacation far away to unwind and reflect on the events which have transpired between them up until this point.

However, some things will never unwind and some people will never be at peace, but for now, the five Kage are making amends to keep the Shinobi Alliance alive and to ensure that peace is protected against future threats.

Six months have passed since Naruto and Hinata stopped Toneri and had their wedding...

 ** _-Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 001: The Relations between the villages after Two Years  
_**

The day was peaceful in Konohagakure, with the leaves fluttering and the sun glistening over the mountains were the faces of all six of the Hokage were mounted.

Kakashi Hatake, Sixth Hokage of the village was alone in his office, and was thinking to himself about the changes that have taken place in the past five years.

"Well Obito, I know that we used to see through each others eyes, but now that you are gone, I know that you will watch over Naruto and ensure that he will always stay on his own path." said Kakashi to himself silently as he finished his last report for the day.

"Hmmm, I wonder how his and Hinata's honeymoon is going, I am sure that Naruto will probably just eat ramen the entire time anyway." said Kakashi as he laughed to himself.

"Lord Hokage, permission to enter?" asked someone waiting outside the door of the Hokage's office. "Yes, you are allowed to enter." said Kakashi.

"Hey, I was just wanting to check to see if all of the reports for the upcoming chunin exam were finished." said Shikamaru as he entered the room.

"Yeah, I tell you, signing all of this reports is probably the hardest thing I have ever done in my career, the documents just keep coming in." said Kakashi with an exhausted expression.

"Yeah, Tsunade complained about the same thing every time I came to check up on her." said Shikamaru.

"Oh well, it is the least I can do, after all, one day, Naruto will be doing the same." laughed Kakashi.

"Yeah, it will be weird seeing him as the Seventh Hokage, but I know that he can do it, I just hope that Hinata mellows him down so he does not get bored to quickly." said Shikamaru jokingly.

"Yeah, that Naruto sure is a hyperactive young man." said Kakashi.

"Well, I am going to go help Temari with her field surveying duty, I will see you later." said Shikamaru. "Okay, take care, and be sure to keep an eye on the border of the Land of Fire, you know, just in case." said Kakashi. "Yes sir, I will." said Shikamaru as he left the room.

"Well, time to get back to finding something to do hehe." laughed Kakashi as he pulled out an old copy of Icha Icha Tactics and began reading it.

Elsewhere, in Kumogakure, Killer Bee was up to pranking his brother again while he was writing his own share of reports for the day. "Okay, brotha, you may be busy right now, but this new prank will make you smile, I mean smile right now, yeah!" said Bee to himself as he had spewed some ink from his mouth and put it onto his index finger.

"Hehehe, I will write my new rhyme all over my brother's office window, that will make him appreciate my rap career for sure, yeah!" exclaimed Bee as he began to write several verses of a very bad written rhyme all over the office of the Raikage's mansion.

"Bee, you know that the Iron claw will be coming, right?" asked Gyuki inside of Bee's conscious. "Oh well, that will do, when my bro realize that he is a foo..fool." exclaimed Bee. "You are a dimwit, you deserve the Iron claw." said Gyuki to Bee.

The raikage was busy monitoring reports from the other four villages concerning a chunin exam that was to be hosted in Kirigakure. "Heh, if you asked me six years ago if I would allow such an event to take place in a village like Kirigakure, I would say no, but times have changed, and I trust Mei, the Mizukage greatly." said A to Darui.

"Yeah, the trust between the villages has improved and maintained well after the war has ended." said Darui.

"It is kind of funny though, all we shinobi do nowadays is merely wait for some kind of threat to appear from a foreign place, but personally, I don't think that will happen." said A as he finished the last document concerning Kumogakure's consent to agree to the first Allied Chunin Exams.

"Still though, how long do you think the five great villages can maintain an alliance like this, surely this thought must cross you're mind?" asked Darui to A.

"Well, the thought has risen in my mind before, but after what we all went through during the war with Madara, I am sure that the future of the Shinobi world is in good hands." said A as he started walking back upstairs to his main office.

"Huh, I guess that is a good way to look at it." said Darui as he left the lower office to resume his own assignment.

"I wonder what Bee is up to, surely he learned from the last Iron Claw that it is not a good idea to spike my morning shake with seaweed juice." said A recalling Bee's last pranking escapade.

"What, what is this, did Bee really just write a bunch of lame-ass lyrics all over my office window, I will crush him for sure!" yelled A as he slammed through the window in pursuit of his bewildered brother.

Darui saw A as he was jumping out of the window. "Oh geez, did Bee pull another one on the boss, well I am not helping him now." said Darui refusing to help Bee avoid punishment from his brother.

Things were moving rather slow in Iwagakure, as Ohnoki had fallen asleep after finishing his reports concerning the hosting of the Allied Chunin Exams. "Oh great, the old geezer has fallen asleep again, this is like the fourth time today." said Kurotsuchi to herself.

"Well, he has done a lot of work in the past six months ever since that moon crisis was adverted." said Akatsuchi trying to defend Ohnoki.

"I guess he replaced that stubbornness of his with laziness." exclaimed Kurotsuchi as she threw a book onto Ohnoki's desk surprising him and causing him to fall out of his chair in the process.

"What the hell, who dares disturb the great Fence-sitter of Iwagakure, the Third Tsuchikage, Lord Ohnoki in this manner?" asked the old man as his back pain started to return.

"Oh relax gramps, I was just making sure you finished all of those reports." said Kurotsuchi to the old kage.

"R...reports, what, oh that is right, those papers that I threw into the trash can." laughed Ohnoki to himself.

"You did what ya old geezer, I swear, those are very important documents, hello, are you crazy?" yelled the granddaughter of Ohnoki.

"Goodness, now I will have to go fetch a new copy of those reports, I will probably just create an Earth golem to do it for me." sighed Akatsuchi to himself.

"Oh relax, I approve of this Allied Chunin Exams, I was just too tired to write all of the reports in one sitting, plus I thought they were just worthless copies of those plans about taking care of my back." said Ohnoki as he got up back in his chair.

"Well, those papers about your back are important, plus it is required that you sign an official document in order to ordain our villages decision in this exam." said Kurotsuchi.

"Yeah, yeah, as soon as I get a new copy I will do it, sheesh, young people, always in my hair." said Ohnoki in an annoyed manner.

"Yeah, what hair you have left, hahaha." laughed Kurotsuchi as she left the office. "What, just wait until I get you... agggghhh, my back!" exclaimed Ohnoki as he fell back into the floor.

"That old geezer will never learn." laughed Kurotsuchi to herself as she exited her grandfather's office.

Kirigakure had finished preparing it's report to ordain the Allied Chunin Exams to take place in it's own area. "I wish Ao was here to see this, after all, he grew up during the Bloody Mist days." said the Fifth Mizukage to her assistant, Chojuro.

"Yeah, he would have liked to have seen it, he would have probably pestered me and told me how things were done back in his day too, hahaha." laughed Chojuro to himself.

"Oh well, with all of the losses that we suffered in the war, at least everyone's spirits live on with us after it." said Mei as she was ready to send a copy of the time of the exams to the other four villages.

"I will send them, okay." said Chojuro as he was ready to head out on his mission.

"Okay, but be careful, there may still be some extremists out their in the minor countries who still disapprove of our alliance." said Mei to her young assistant.

"Don't worry, marriage is the only thing I will not be careful with." said Chojuro in a joking manner as he left the Mizukage's office.

"Hey, he stole my own saying and reversed it!" yelled Mei in a comical manner.

Sunagakure had finalized it's agreement with the other villages to continue funding safe practices for the new genin and the upcoming exams. "It is amazing how far we have came with this, eh Gaara?" asked Kankuro to his brother.

"Yeah, thanks to everyone's efforts, young shinobi can finally grow up in peace and serve as protectors to ensure this peace." said Gaara with a cheerful expression.

"I wounder how Naruto is doing?" asked Kankuro. "Hmm, from what I read from Kakashi's report, he is on a honeymoon with his bride, Hinata Hyuga on a private island somewhere." said Gaara.

"Whoa boy, I would have never thought any girl would be crazy enough to end up with him, hahaha, that is great." laughed Kankuro at the prospect of Naruto's tendencies.

"Yeah, and with Temari actually finding someone like Shikamaru, I just hope she does not go overboard on him." said Gaara as he finished his report for the day.

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that, I will be sure to pray for Shikamaru's safety, ahahahaha." laughed Kankuro knowing how fierce Temari can be.

"Seriously though, I will continue to patrol the Land of Wind's border and make sure that things are going smoothly." said Kankuro.

"Okay, be careful." said Gaara as Kankuro ran out of the office to begin his patrol. "Naruto, I wonder how you really are doing right now?" thought Gaara to himself as he started to look over more reports.

Naruto and Hinata were enjoying their third day of their honeymoon on a private island off of the coast of the Land of Lightning.

"Hinata, this new pineapple drink will be good for our dance tonight." said Naruto with joy as he and Hinata laid back in chairs on the solitude beach.

"Just make sure you do not drink too many of them, you got a stomach ache last time after all." exclaimed Hinata in a joking manner.

"Hey, you don't have to worry about that, anyway, all that matters is that you are happy." said Naruto as he held Hinata's hand.

"I think we should return back to the hotel before the tides start to rise, it is almost dark out here." said Hinata.

"Yeah, we can enjoy the festivities of that very bad music that they have back at the hotel too, hahaha." laughed Naruto as he and Hinata both started to walk towards the direction of the hotel and the surrounding city on the island.

"Oh Naruto, never change, I love you." thought Hinata to herself as a tear of joy fell from her eyes.

"Oh that reminds me, I have a secret to tell you when we get back." said Hinata with joy.

"Cool, I love secrets, even if I am bad at keeping them, haha." laughed Naruto as the two arrived in the area of the hotel that they were staying at.

"Well, just make sure you don't tell this secret you big knucklehead." laughed Hinata as she kissed Naruto on his right cheek and ran into the hotel's main door.

"I will be upstairs whenever you are ready to come sleep for the night." said Hinata she was getting ready for bed.

"Ok, I will be up their shortly after I get some fresh air." said Naruto as he stared into the sunset.

"Pervy sage, today was a good day, I really love Hinata, I wish you could have been their for our wedding but I know that you are in my heart, I will let you know Hinata's secret when she tells me, hehe." said Naruto to himself as he was thinking of his dear late teach, Jiraiya.

"Naruto, are you ready?" asked Hinata from the second floor balcony of the hotel.

"Yeah, I am getting tired too, we will be heading back to the village the day after tomorrow anyway, so let's not waste anymore time!" said Naruto as he went up to the second floor balcony and held hands with his bride.

Naruto and Hinata looked into the stars as the sun set, and they saw a shooting star fly by.

"Neji, is that you watching over us?" thought Hinata to herself as she and Naruto enjoyed the view of the night sky.

-To be continued next week with "Naruto Shippuden -H- Chapter 002!"


	2. Kakashi Hatake - Sixth Hokage

_**-Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 002: Kakashi Hatake - Sixth Hokage-  
**_

"A, a secret, what kind of secret could you be talking about?" asked Naruto as he and Hinata laid in their bed.

"Oh, well, ummm, ummm, we are going to have a child." said Hinata as she began to blush ever so brightly.

"A child, what, our..you...serious?" asked Naruto as he started to sweat and fell out of the bed.

"Yes, I could not be any happier, but this is certainly a new expirence that makes me feel nervous." said Hinata with a smile and shyness.

"Hmmm, we will talk about it in the morning, you are very tired right now dear, just relax and let yourself rest." said Naruto as he kissed Hinata on the forehead and laid beside her with the thought of their unborn child in his mind.

"I wonder what we will name him, uhhhhm, or her?" asked Naruto to himself as he fell asleep.

The next morning, things are going on their usual track in Konohagakure, and Kakashi is slow to get up and accustomed to the routine again.

"Kakashi, it is seven in the morning, time to get up and start looking over the feedbacks from the other villages." said Shizune to the sleepy man.

"Just, five more minutes." said Kakashi as he had a copy of Icha Icha Tactics on his face.

"That's it, I am going to throw that book away unless you get up!" yelled Shizune in a comical manner as Kakashi immediately got out of his bed.

"Okay, okay, I am up, but that bed is soooo cozy." said Kakashi as he walked towards the mirror in the living quarters of the Kage's mansion.

"Sorry if I scared you, I had to do the same thing with Tsunade when she was Hokage." said Shizune in an apologetic manner.

"Ah, don't sweat it, it was my fault for being up too late last night anyway." said Kakashi as he finished putting on his Hokage attire and started to walk up the steps that led to the office.

"It can be a stressful job, even more than being on the battlefield, eh?" asked Shizune.

"Well, I would not say it is that bad, it is just all of the documents and paperwork, they are endless, it is almost like I am under a genjutsu or something!" said Kakashi who was already looking dazed as he and Shizune arrived in the office.

"It is no genjutsu, this is the jutsu known as being Hokage, if you know what I mean." said Shizune as she handed Kakakshi two cups of his favorite coffee.

"Hooo boy, never thought I would get this acquainted with coffee, it sure can be a life saver." said Kakashi as he chugged both cups almost instantly.

"My goodness, it seems you were very groggy this morning, but that should do the trick." said Shizune as she handed Kakashi the reports for the day.

"It is eight in the morning now, looks like you will not be too busy today, when you are finished, you can come by my place, that is... if you want." blushed Shizune as she slowly walked out of the door.

"Hmmmm, is she still trying to bedazzle me, oh silly girl, the only thing that will have my attention is all of these reports for the next eight hours!" said Kakashi as he began to intensely sign off on all of the required documents for the day.

The eight hours passed quickly as Kakashi finished up on signing the last of the documents pertaining to the Allied Chunin Exams that were to be held in a month. Kakashi got up and cleaned the office before leaving his room.

"Only thing to do now is wait for Naruto and Hinata to get back from their honeymoon, then I can ask him for that favor." said Kakashi as he laid in his bed and looked over at the picture of his genin team.

"Well Rin, Sensei, Obito, today sure was monotonous, but it was also peaceful, there was a lot of festivities going on in the village today, I did not get to participate obviously but at least the village is being protected just as you three would want." thought Kakashi to himself as he stared at the ceiling.

"Well, well, if it isn't my rival slacking off on the job yet again, the passion of youth is lost in you." said a loud voice as Kakashi rose up out of the bed.

"For your information Gai, I have just finished all of my reports for the day and was just waiting for Shizune to return with any additional updates for my field duty." said Kakashi in an aggravated tone.

"Sorry to bother you, but I was just wanting to make sure that my number one rival was ready for his field duty." said Might Guy with an optimistic tone.

"Don't worry I am, just take it easy yourself Gai, after all, I have been hearing that you have been trying to train again despite your injury." said Kakashi as he got into his shinobi outfit and equipped his book.

"Yeah, this injury sure is a pain, but what better way to retire than from using the eight gates against the Ten Tails Jinchurikki Madara!" said Guy as he sat proudly in his wheel-chair and remembered his bout against Madara two and a half years prior.

"It sure was something else, there is no reason for you to feel depressed Gai, what you did during the war was an ultimate act of self sacrifice and what it truly means to be a shinobi." said Kakashi as he places his arm on Gai's shoulder and gave him an assuring look as he left the mansion to report to his fielf duty.

"Thanks you Kakashi, I will be sure to show off more of my heroics in the next game of Janken, just you wait my rival." said Guy as he wheeled his way back to the hotsprings.

Kakashi reported to the southern border of Konohagakure, along with Kiba and Shino, to start up his three hour field duty for the day.

"Man, this bites, no missions of interest and now I am stuck here looking at the horizon for the next three hours." said Kiba with an aggravated tone.

"You are irritated, why is that?, because you hate to remain on a job that requires you to remain as motionless as an insect." said Shino as stoic as ever.

"No, it is your word-play that pisses me off." said Kiba as he sat down to observe his post.

"You guys sure are entertaining, but this field duty will be over in no time, afterall I had to undertake eight hours of paperwork prior to." said Kakashi with a sweat.

"Goodness, maybe I will just remain a jonin for the rest of my life then, hehe." said Kiba who hated the prospect of being confined to a desk for most of his day.

Elsewhere, Naruto and Hinata were on their way back from the Land of Lightning and had finally arrived into the Land of Fire.

"I cannot still shake that thought out of my head, being a dad, that is something else." said Naruto with a lound and excited voice.

"I wounder if it is like when Miso Ramen and Beef Ramen get together." continued on Naruto in his ditzy manner.

"Yes, it was definatley a surprise to me as well, I was feeling a little dizzy when we first arrived at the island, so I decided to go see a nurse and that is where I found out about it." said Hinata.

"Oh really, I thought you just ate too many flower garden salads." said Naruto who was ignorant of what Hinata said.

"We are almost back in the village, let's keep this a secret between us for now, we can announce it to everyone else soon, but I just want it to be a surprise." said Hinata who started to blush again.

"Sure thing, the look on everyone's faces will be awesome, I cannot wait to see Kakashi-sensei and Sakura's reactions the most." said Naruto who was so excited he was shaking.

"Oh wow, you really are excited about this." said Hinata as the two made their way back to the village.

Back on the Island where Naruto and Hinata had their honeymoon, the hotel they were staying in was being eyed by someone.

"Oho, so they must have left my now, I was certain that, according to the data that was presented, there would be at least one more day before the hero Naruto Uzumaki departed back to Konohagakure." said an older man wearing a suit and tie, emerging from the forest that surrounded the hotel.

"It seems I am too late for now, but with Naruto's commitment to his wife, I am sure that they will be fine." said the old man in the suit as he was approached by a janitor that kept the hotel clean.

"Excuse me sir are you okay?" asked the janitor in a concerned manner.

"Oh I would not worry about me." said the old man in the suit as he pulled out a kunai and stabbed the janitor in the abdomen.

"Time to leave, if Naruto is not here, this place is worthless to me." said the old man as he ran off into the location of the Land of Lightning's border.

"Jesei, was Naruto at the Island off the coast of the Land of Lightning's beach?" asked a voice from a radio that the man in the suit had in his ear.

"No Antoine, he was not their, but I will be sure to find him and issue him a challenge that he cannot refuse." said the man whose name was Jesei Leikough.

"Naruto Uzumaki, the big boss sure is excited at the prospect of meeting you, I would just hate to keep him waiting much longer, please be a good boy and stay in Konoha for me." laughed the elderly Jesei as he was determined to arrive in Konoha to confront the Uzumaki.

Elsewhere, Kakashi's field duty came to an end, and he decided to return back to his bedroom in the Hokage's living quarters.

"Man, that sure was another smooth day, not a single sight of any trouble at all." said Kakashi as he took of his Hokage hat and immediately fell onto his bed.

"Well Obito, Rin, Sensei, the evening was not so bad either, things went good while I was out patrolling the border of our village, though I wish I could have a little bit of sake, anyway I will talk to you guys tomorrow." thought Kakashi as he always remembered to speak with his former team in his heart every morning and evening.

"Hmmm, now maybe I should go to the library tomorrow before my work begins and find a new book to read in my off time, yes, and maybe I can ask Shizune to come with me, that wou..." said Kakashi as he dozed off into sleep as night had arrived.

"Kakashi sensei!" yelled Naruto as he ran into the room of the sleeping man.

"Wooooaaahhhh!" yelled Kakashi as he jumped out of his bed.

"I have good news, me and Hinata's honeymoon went very well, excellent in fact!" yelled Naruto with much joy.

"I see Naruto, that is good, but did you really have to wake me up at three in the morning!" yelled Kakashi as he fell back onto his bed.

"Oh sorry, I will tell you more about our honeymoon in the afternoon." said Naruto as he shut the door the Kakashi's bedroom.

"Honeymoon, honey...moon, honey..." murmured Kakashi as he dozed off into sleep once again thinking of how hungry he was.

The elderly man in the suit continued on his way towards Konoha with the intent of meeting Naruto Uzumaki.

"Damn, it seems night has finally arrived, heh, this will make it easier to infiltrated the Land of Fire without being noticed at all." said Jesei as he arrived at a watchtower where a shinobi from Kumogakure was watching over the border.

"Hmmm, seems he is asleep right now, I guess times of peace had only manged to lower the guard of these worthless shinobi nowadays." said Jesei as he performed the rabbit and ox handsigns. "Ninja Art: Countless Homing Shuriken" said Jesei as many shuriken were launched up at the sleeping ninja high atop the watchtower he was in.

"Guaaaahhhh!" screamed the Kumo shinobi as he awoke the find his body pierced head to toe with shuriken before dieing from the injury.

"Maybe next time, I will come across a Konoha shinobi!" said Jesei as he ran out of the Land of Lightning's border and had his target set in Konohagakure.

"I am sure the boss will not mind if I leave a few more corpses in my wake." said Jesei as he was suddenly greeted by a figure standing in the forest to the right of his position.

 _ **-To be continued next week with Chapter 003...-**_


	3. What has Become of the Rookie Nine?

_**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 003: What has become of the Rookie Nine?**_

Jesei was on his way tracking down Naruto and Hinata after being unable to meet them in the Land of Lightning. He had made his way several miles out of the border of the Land of Lightning, until he was greeted by a figure standing in the woods to his right.

"You sure you are up to this old man, I mean this long illustrious journey to try and find the golden hero that is?" asked the man as he walked out of the forestry and stood in front of Jesei on a long path.

"Don't give me this shit now Lunesto, I will do just fine, the boss knows this and that is why he chose me to be the one to gather information and make an invitation to Naruto Uzumaki." said Jesei defending himself.

"Okay, I understand, it is just I wanted to be the one who got to carry out this mission, you know how much I wanted to meet him after all." said Lunesto with a disappointed tone.

"Well too bad, this is my duty, you and the others will get an assignment of your own in time, Naruto is sure to welcome his invitation to our city once he gets all of the fine details." said Jesei with joy.

"Alright old man, I will go let Antoine know about our progress here, see ya later." said Lunesto as the young man ran off into the woods.

"Time to keep going, there should not be much resistance on this path, but just in case, I will have my Mind Release jutsu on hold to be sure." said Jesei as he somberly walked his way towards the border of the Land of Fire.

Night had come, and Rock Lee and Tenten were gathering flowers for Neji's grave while also discussing things about their sensei, Rock Lee.

"It does not seem like that much time has passed since the war." said Tenten as she finished picking out the right assortment of flowers.

"I am not much of a decorator, but these flowers will definitely make the grave site look very good." said Rock Lee as he tried to cheer himself up thinking of Neji.

"Have a good day ma'am." said the shop owner of the flower store as Tenten and Rock Lee left to head towards the Memorial.

"I remember when me and Neji would always clash heads on who was the more superior shinobi on the team, he was certain it was him, I mean, with his Byakugan and all." said Lee with a smile.

"Yeah, you two would go at it all of the time, especially before the chunin exams began, it was like neither of you would ever get along." said Tenten as the two of them arrived at the memorial.

"That is true, but in the past two years, I have been thinking and then it occurred to me, every time I think of Neji's sacrifice, it motivates me to push higher and train at the most intense level possible." said Lee with tears.

"Yep, I have been trying to make the most of my time as well with the peace that has settled in since the war has ended." said Tenten as she laid the flowers around Neji's grave.

"Well, I guess it is time to train in honor of Neji Hyuga, after all, that is what a rival is all about, even if they are not here in person." said Rock Lee as he ran off towards the dojo that his sensei had recently built.

"Even though it is late, all he can think about is training himself to be the best for Neji." said Tenten as she also left the memorial to focus on training with her weapons.

Kiba and Shino had returned from their field duty, and the both of them stopped by a bento shop to relax while they waited on Hinata and Naruto to get out of the Hokage's mansion.

"It is nice to hear that Naruto and Hinata have returned." said Kiba as he finished his third bowl of bento soup.

"I cannot believe that those two still ended up together, why you ask, because Hinata never told me that she was even remotely into him." said Shino with a stoic look.

"Dude, even to this day you still find ways to make me feel strange." said Kiba in a joking tone.

"When Naruto get's here then the two of you will make jokes, but not remember who I am." said Shino with a sad demeanor.

"You are just proving my point dammit!" yelled Kiba as he went to sit at another table away from Shino.

Elsewhere, Shikamaru had returned from his hectic day of preparing for the Allied Chunin Exams. He sat outside of his home and began looking up at the stars in the sky, thinking of Shikaku and Asuma.

"Hey, are you coming in, it is getting late?" asked a woman as she emerged from the house with a lantern.

"Yeah, just a minute, I was thinking of dad and Asuma again, even though I am doing well for myself right now, those two will never leave my mind." said Shikamaru as he continued to stare into the night sky.

"Well, when we fought in the chunin exams, you said you were the type who liked to look up at the clouds all day, so I can imagine that looking up at the stars is an even more joyous occasion." said Temari as she sat down beside Shikamaru.

"It is always more enjoyable when another person is their to look at the stars with you." said Temari as she sat close to Shikamaru and leaned her head on his right shoulder.

"Yep, this is nice, two people looking up at the stars is certainly more joy than only one." said Shikamaru.

"You did well today, all of the Hokage's reports have been sent out and once again, the Allied Chunin Exams are getting set up rather well." said Temari.

"I could not do it without you though." said Shikamaru as he put his right hand around Temari.

"It's as you said, two people are better than one, but three are better than two." said Temari.

"Hmmm, is there another person you know who looks up at the sky at night like I do?" asked Shikamaru with curiosity.

"Well, they are not here right now, but soon that will change." said Temari as the two of them went inside for the night.

Chouji and Ino had finished cleaning up the Yamanaka clan flower shop as ten o'clock had rolled around.

"I am going to need an entire buffet to compensate for this." said Chouji.

"Hey, you are the one who agreed to help me out after all." said Ino with laughter.

"I bet Shikamaru had a busy day too, with preparing for all of the events that are coming up." said Chouji as pulled out a bag of chips and downed them quickly.

"Hehehe, yeah, he probably slacked off while no one was looking, I can picture it just as clear as the stars in the sky." laughed Ino thinking of Shikamaru's tendencies.

"Nah, he wouldn't slack off, especially not after being promoted to Jonin commander after all." said Chouji with glee.

"Yep, just like his old man." said Ino as she was also thinking of her own father Inoichi.

"Anyway, I have finished up here, I think it is time that I headed back to my house, I would hate to keep Karui worrying." said Chouji.

"Ughh, you two have been impossible to separate ever since that joint mission with the cloud village." said Ino.

"Hey, she had a very awesome fighting style, I loved it, even more than food." said Chouji with laughter.

"I guess, there are definitely others out their that make for an even more strange couple." said Ino.

"Hey, I am not strange." said Chouji as he ran out of the flower shop towards his and Karui's home.

"I was not talking about you or Karui." said Ino to herself as she closed the flower shop for the night.

"There you are, it has been a long time, I was afraid you would never finish to chores for the night." said Sai as he walked up and greeted Ino.

"You could have helped too ya know." said Ino sarcastically.

"Hey, I am the one and only air division for Konoha, I have to keep surveillance on the entire parameter each day, and I do not even have time to draw a new picture either." said Sai trying to make Ino pity him.

"Alright, you can draw as much as you want when you get home, but first we will have to finish preparing for Naruto and Hinata's return from their honeymoon, I hear that they are at Ichiraku Ramen right now." said Ino as she and Sai walked towards their home.

Meanwhile, Sakura was outside that gates of the village gathering a various assortment of herbs by herself as 11 o'clock came around.

"It sure is late, I had know idea that the time had flown by this quickly." said Sakura as she finished gathering the last of the sweet root herb before making her way to a pond that was nearby.

"I just wish you would return soon, with your eyes, it would make it easier to find all of these herbs after all." said Sakura as she had a few tears fall from her face.

"Oh well, no time to sulk right now, Sasuke is on a big mission and I need to do my part here as well making sure to have all of my herbs collected for the antidotes." said Sakura as she sat on a medium-sized rock near the pond.

"It sure is beautiful during this time of the night, oh my." said Sakura as she closed her eyes.

"Sasuke, you be careful out their, do not attempt anything restless." said Sakura as he fell asleep on the bench.

A person with a cloak was standing on a ledge that overlooked the leaf village.

"The stars have always mesmerized me." said the figure to themselves.

"Sakura, I know it is lonely right now, but everything will be fine soon." said the man to himself as he could see Sakura sleeping on the rock near the pond by herself.

"I do not want anything happening to you, I will move you back home." said the figure as he picked up Sakura gently without disturbing her and swiftly teleported to Sakura's home.

"Here, I even brought you some ingredients that you will surely need in the future, I.. I love you, see you soon." said the man as a tear fell from the Rinnegan in his left eye.

"Time to continue my route for tonight, at least I got to hold you for a little while." said Sasuke with a smile as he teleported away as quickly as he arrived.

Naruto and Hinata had finally arrived home, and Naruto could not be more happy to lay in his own bed.

"You sure are tired tonight." said Hinata as she finished putting away all of her gifts that Naruto bought for her during their honeymoon.

"The ocean was very beautiful wasn't it?" asked Naruto as he scooted over to the end of the bed.

"It sure was, it was almost as beautiful as your blue eyes." said Hinata as she lied down beside Naruto and gave him a kiss on his right cheek.

"I still cannot believe the news, I wonder what we should name him, or ummm her?" laughed Naruto.

"That is a good question, I am sure the answer will be made clear soon enough." said Hinata as the two fell into a peaceful sleep.

It was now two in the morning and the village of Konohagakure had gone quite for the night. Elsewhere, Jesei had arrived in Tanzaku Town.

"Not much further now, but how will I approach the situation?" asked Jesei to himself.

"Ahaha, found you." laughed Lunesto as the young, majestic teen arrived near Jesei's premise.

"How in the hell do you keep finding me?" asked Jesei.

"Hey, I am one with the bats all around you, my affiliation with them is second to none." said Lunesto as he pulled out a scroll from his right pocket and handed it to Jesei.

"The eight of us all were told to receive a scroll just like this one." said Lunesto as he handed Jesei his own scroll.

"The hell is it for?" asked Jesei as he put it away in his pant's pocket.

"Big boss did not say, he seemed a bit cranky today anyway, that is why I decided to travel with you." said Lunesto in a playful mood.

"Well now you know why I call him Old Man Dead, hahaha." laughed Jesei.

"Seriously though, if anyone suspicious starts to follow us, we have been given orders to execute them without question." said Jesei.

"Of course, oh, and by the way, what time do we head out for Konoha tomorrow?" asked Lunesto as the two of them decided to camp out in the woods a few miles ahead of Tanzaku Town.

"I would say around eight in the morning, that is when our soldiers from Abraham will arrive in the premise." said Jesei with a menacing grin.

"Abraham is quite a ways from here, how are they all going to get here in six hours?" asked Lunesto.

"Hey, the boss has a way to gather all of our soldiers and teleport them anywhere he wants whenever he wants." said Jesei with a joyful tone.

"Okay, I guess it is a plan then, the insurrection will definitely catch Naruto's attention, that will certainly make it much easier to meet with him when the rest of the village is busy dealing with our cloak and dagger tactics, hehehe." laughed Lunesto as they continued to review their plan looking for any flaws that may present themselves.

"Soon, the will of our boss shall be known to all of these infidels that squander through these lands like the vile bugs that they are." said Jesei with an intense tone.

"Yes, all of these sinners and ungrateful swine shall be casted into the melting pot, because tomorrow morning, our first step begins." said Lunesto as the two of them got a little sleep before their mission began.

Sasuke was traveling away from the leaf after taking Sakura to her hose.

"I am sensing something with the Rinnegan, although I am unsure what it could be." said Sasuke to himself as he was looking for any suspicious signs of trouble throughout the area.

"It will be better to notify Kakashi in the morning with a messenger hawk about my premonitions." said Sasuke as he felt a vast unease about the upcoming day as the night began to transition to dusk.

 _ **-To be continued next week with Chapter 004...-**_


	4. Insurrection

_**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 004: Insurrection  
**_  
Sasuke continued about his venture through the woods after sensing that something was amiss in the area surrounding Konohagakure.

"It has been a while since I started this journey to explore the world alone, but it was not until now that I had a feeling of unease to strike my eyes." said Sasuke to himself as he continued to run through the woods looking for any sign of suspicion.

"If I cannot find anything by morning, it would be best to notify Kakashi at once." thought Sasuke to himself as he stopped at the edge of a cliff to rest.

Morning came as 5 o'clock rose about, things in the leaf were running smoothly as they normally did in times of peace. Naruto had awoken before Hinata and decided to head out for a morning exercise.

"I do not want to wake her up right now, she seems to be sleeping peacefully." said Naruto quietly as he ran out towards the old training grounds where he took his bell test years ago.

"This should do the trick, I always love training here in the morning, it would be best to not go overboard though." said Naruto to himself as he started practicing using the most minimal force necessary.

"Hmm, looks like Naruto is still working very early, I guess he doesn't settle down even in times of peace." said Sai as he was sitting by a tree near the training ground were Naruto was at.

"Hey Sai, are you going to draw another picture of me training again?" asked Naruto as he noticed Sai in the brink of his eye.

"I guess your observation is also up to par, but no, I am just jotting down a list of things that Ino wants me to pick up by the end of the day." said Sai as he continued to just down a hefty list of items.

"Seems you have your own training to worry about, hahah." laughed Naruto.

"They don't make books for shopping, so I have to learn all of this stuff the hard way, oh, how did your honeymoon with Hinata go?" asked Sai.

"It went very well, we had a good time by the beach, and they had the best cajun seasoned ramen in the world their." said Naruto happily.

"It always comes down to ramen with you, hehe." laughed Sai as he finished up his list.

"Time for me to head out, it's close to seven in the morning, Ino is probably looking for me now, see ya." said Sai as he drew a large bird on his scroll and hopped on it.

"Take it easy now." said Naruto as he waved goodbye to Sai.

"Well, I better not be out here too long, don't want to keep Hinata waiting after all." said Naruto as he decided to finish up his morning workout.

Kakashi had arrived in the Kage's office around 8 o'clock and started to review the documents that he had finished the day prior.

"Everything seems to be going well right now, it will not be long before the Allied Chunin Exams begin." said Kakashi to himself as he finished his cup of coffee.

"Oh there you are, too busy to stop by, don't worry about it, seems you are busy this morning after all." said Shizune as she walked into the office with a package of new reports from the other four nations.

"Yeah, sorry about that, well it seems I have more work to do now anyway." sighed Kakashi as he got up to get another cup of coffee.

A medium-sized hawk suddenly flew into the window directly behind Kakashi's seat with a scroll firmly tucked between it's talons.

"Huh, seems someone else has a report for us as well this morning." said Shizune as she walked over to take the scroll and read it's contents.

"Another scroll, sheesh, I was not expecting this so early in the morning." said Kakashi as he sat down to hear what the scroll contained.

"Hey, this scroll is from Sasuke, here take a look." said Shizune with a surprised tone.

"Sasuke, he has not sent a scroll ever since he was pardoned for his crimes after the war ended over two years ago." said Kakashi who was also surprised by this new development.

"Here, I will read it, must be something serious if Sasuke decided to send one of his summoned hawks to bring it." said Kakashi as Shizune handed the scroll over to him.

"Let's see what it says." said Kakashi as he began to read the scroll's content for himself.

"It seems that Sasuke has detected a disturbance somewhere within a fifty mile radius of the gates of the hidden leaf." said Kakashi to Shizune.

"A disturbance, did he specify on what it was?" asked Shizune with concern.

"No, it seems he was not able to detect exactly what it was, but he stated in this document that he will notify me with more information as it comes about, by any means we need to be on the look out just in case." said Kakashi as he put the scroll in his desk.

"I will give this hawk a scroll showing that I have read Sasuke's report and I will ask him to continue to look for whatever may be brewing out their." said Kakashi as he quickly wrote a document and sealed it into a scroll before handing it over to the hawk.

"Get this back to Sasuke as quickly as you can." said Kakashi to the hawk as it flew quickly into the horizon.

"Should I notify anyone else about this right now?" asked Shizune.

"Not just yet, let's wait for a follow up report from Sasuke first." said Kakashi as he had faith that Sasuke could deal with it.

"Okay, well I am going to patrol the gates for a few hours, I will also notify you if I find anything." said Shizune as she began to leave.

"Alright, be careful." said Kakashi as he got back to his work.

"I should let Tsunade know of this at least, she has been bored being in the council and all." said Shizune as she left the Hokage's mansion.

Jesei and Lunesto had awaken from their sleep when they decided to inch slightly closer to the direction of Konohagakure.

"It seems that our soldiers from Abraham are stationed on the western border of the Land of Fire right now according to the allotted time that they gave us." said Jesei as he got on his radio to talk with someone.

"You should ask Antoine, he is in charge of camp Abraham after all." said Lunesto.

"That is what I am doing now." said Jesei as he was waiting to receive a frequency from the location of Abraham's outpost.

"Jesei, this is Sheppard, me and nineteen others are stationed exactly as you commanded around the western border of the land of fire." said Sheppard as he spoke to Jesei over radio.

"Good, we will wait until noon to make a move, no need to rush things, we are not looking for an outright conflict, we are just trying to give a little distraction to alert the top brass of Konoha, which includes Naruto Uzumaki." said Jesei to Sheppard.

"Okay, how should we approach the situation once noon rolls around?" asked Sheppard.

"Tell the other soldiers to use a barrier ninjutsu, preferably a high caliber one to mask you're movements." instructed Jesei to Sheppard and the rest of his platoon.

"Gotcha, we will do just as you command, anything else before I end this transmission, don't want the leaf to hijack us." said Sheppard.

"Don't worry about that, as far as I know, no one is aware of our location or yours as of now, just remember to use your jutsu to place no more than a thousand explosive tags on the eastern and western gates of Konoha" said Jesei.

"Okay, I will let the rest of the platoon know this too, farewell." said Sheppard as he ended his transmission to Jesei.

"Are you sure this will go smoothly, Konoha has got a top notch sensory division after all." said Lunesto in a teasing manner.

"Yes, I am sure this will turn out well, all that matters is that we lure out Naruto Uzumaki so I can give him an invitation from boss." said Jesei reassuringly.

"Why not just go to Konoha and civilly ask for his answer yourself instead of staging this small scale assault?" asked Lunesto as he and Jesei began to slowly traverse the forest to the north of their location.

"That would be a good idea indeed, but boss told me specifically to carry out our objective like this." said Jesei as he was getting irritated by Lunesto's constant bickering.

"Hey, sometimes the old man can be a little senile, eh, hahahaha." laughed Lunesto.

"Then why don't you say that to his face when we get back to Lazarus." said Jesei with an irritated tone.

"Eh, I was just joking, damn, take it easy." said Lunesto as he started to tremble a little from the thought of telling such a thing to his boss.

"Let's just wait here until noon, I will use my jutsu to create a false alarm alerting that someone has entered the southern gates of Konoha, that should capture their attention long enough so that our soldiers from Abraham can plant several explosives on the eastern and western gates." said Jesei as he was reviewing the plan with Lunesto.

"That does not sound half bad, but why not let me sneak in from underground afterwards to conduct a little espionage while the leaf shinobi are distracted by the ruckus?" asked Lunesto to Jesei.

"Hmm, you thought of a good idea for once, alright, but make sure that you wait until the soldiers from Abraham activate the explosive tags before you do so." said Jesei with a stern tone.

"Okay, I will use my summoning jutsu to unleash my own special blend of bats to conduct sonar sensing while I am traveling underground to detect any traps that those bastards may have set." said Lunesto.

"Alright, sounds like a plan, now all we have to do is wait two more hours and we can begin." said Jesei.

"I will start my underground travel now, it should take me around two hours to reach the gates of Konoha, of course I will go slowly to allow the rest of you to carry out the opening act." said Lunesto as he used an Earth Release technique to dig a tunnel underground.

"Remember what I told you, after I use my Mind Release jutsu, and after the explosives go out, that is when you are to act, no sooner, or later." said Jesei.

"Okay, gotcha captain." said Lunesto as he descended into the ground.

"Soon, soon we can kick off the world wide insurrection of Lazarus' main goal, to embezzle all of the five great nation's funding and cut their communications, hehehe." said Jesei as he waited for the moment to attack.

Elsewhere, Sasuke was still on the watch for the disturbance that he detected the night prior.

"It seems that Kakashi did receive my message after all." said Sasuke as his hawk had arrived at his location.

"I would be in a better situation if I were to use my Rinnegan to rapidly teleport and look for something that way." said Sasuke as he quickly vanished further into the forest where he sensed the suspicious activity.

The soldiers from the camp of Abraham were all preparing to erect their barrier to being with the mission.

"Sheppard, we have all made the required hand signs, the sensory department from Konoha should not be able to detect us now." said one of the soldiers.

"Good, I will prepare my jutsu which shall create 1,000 explosive tags to attach to the eastern and western walls as instructed from Jesei." said Sheppard to the rest of his platoon.

Suddenly, a man wearing a pair of sun glasses and a red suit appeared before Sheppard and his platoon.

"It would be wise for me to come along too, just in case things go south." said the man to the platoon.

"Antoine Keido, one of Lazarus' Knights of Dawn, it is a pleasure for you to join us on this escapade." said one of the soldiers to the suit-clad man.

"No problem, I am to believe that you were instructed properly on how to handle this assault from Jesei, right Sheppard? asked Antoine.

"Yes, do you know the plan as well?" asked Sheppard to Antoine.

"Of course I do, me and the other seven knights went over it many times for the past week, this plan will not fail." said Antoine with reassurance.

"Okay, it is eleven now, one more hour until we shall begin." said Sheppard with a menacing tone.

"Yes, as the will of our leader, our boss, our God, we shall not fail his majesty in what he has assigned to us, the dark serpent shall have his meeting with Naruto Uzumaki, and this, this is the first step in that plan." said Antoine with a tone of joy.

"Of course, I also plan on killing Kakashi Hatake when I get the chance as well, he will never see it coming." laughed Antoine as he and the soldiers from camp Abraham began to head out towards Konohagakure.

 _ **-To be continued next time with Chapter 005...-**_


	5. The Operation of Abraham Begins

_**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 005: The Operation of Abraham Begins**_

Antoine and the platoon of soldiers from Abraham began to quickly traverse the area around them, closing in on their destination outside of the barrier of Konohagakure.

"Yes, Kakashi, we will have our go-around soon enough, but for now this plan is of utmost importance." said Antoine with a grin as he used the body flicker technique to quickly teleport to a distance within ten feet of the barrier surrounding the western gate of Konoha.

Sheppard and eight other soldiers decided to surround the outside of the eastern gate, while, the other eleven decided to join Antoine with covering the western gate.

"Time to notify Jesei, sir." said one of the soldiers that was in the company of Antoine.

"Yes, he will be approaching the southern border, where he will use his jutsu to create a false point of entry in order to create a diversion long enough for Sheppard to place his one thousand explosive tags on those walls." said Antoine to the soldiers of Abraham that were with him.

"Sheppard, this is Antoine, contact Jesei on radio and tell him that we are ready, it is five minutes till noon after all." said Antoine as he contacted Sheppard via radio.

"Yes sir, this will be the true opening act." said Sheppard as he searched for Jesei's access point.

"Jesei here, I am in position just far enough outside of Konoha's barrier that I cannot be detected." said Jesei as he was using the Hiding in Camouflage Jutsu for extra security.

"I assume you are near the southern gate, and you are now going to use your jutsu to create a diversion for me?" asked Sheppard over radio.

"Yes, just wait a few minutes, and while we are at it, be wary of any surprise ambushes from those of the leaf with advanced sensory skills." said Jesei as he prepared his jutsu for activation.

Meanwhile, Shizune had arrived at the location of where Tsunade was staying, around a mile from the southern border. Shizune walked in to see that the room that Tsunade would usually deal with her business to be flooded with clothes and in complete shambles.

"I see you do not excel at home cleaning." said Shizune who was used to finding Tsunade's room in such condition.

"Hey, I had to listen to all kinds of different pleas for ideas concerning the Allied Chunin Exams yesterday, 'bout drove me insane, by the time I got home, I fell asleep directly." said Tsunade as she was looking through the window that was in front of the table she was sitting at.

"Ever since you took the spot of Homura and Koharu, you have been under extra pressure." said Shizune with concern.

"Well, that is what they requested before they retired from the position, I was to take up their mantle after I gave the title of Hokage to Kakashi, and in doing so, I decided to take on a new job, being the sole member of the Konoha Council." said Tsunade with a serious tone as she continued to browse what she could see from out the window.

"I am glad to see that you are taking this seriously, but I have some news of my own, just around two hours ago, I was in Kakashi's office speaking with him on some of the reports that were to be filled out that day, but anyway, a messenger hawk flew in and gave Kakashi a scroll that was from Sasuke." said Shizune.

"Really, this is interesting indeed, tell me more about this, and while you do that, I will start preparing my chakra just in case something is amiss." said Tsunade as she sharpened her focus.

"Based of what Kakashi read from that scroll, Sasuke notified us that he detected several disturbances from within the vicinity of the village, although he was not yet able to specify on what they were." said Shizune with concern.

"Really, well since I have nothing better to do right now, I will join Sasuke in this hunt, anyone that tries to undo the peace that we were able to achieve must be put out of commission before they can do any lasting harm." said Tsunade as she prepared to leave her apartment.

"I will notify some of the other shinobi who are on border duty, as well as alert the sensory department of this occurrence." said Shizune.

"Good, be sure to act quickly, if I can find out what is going on out their before an invasion or sneak attack begins, we will be in good hands." said Tsunade as she walked out of the door and quickly leaped over the buildings that were in her path.

"Time to get to work, better notify Sakura, Sai, and Naruto as well, they will come in most handy with tracking down a possible intruder." said Shizune as she began to act.

Jesei was ready to activate his jutsu on the vicinity of the Southern gate of Konoha.

"This should do the trick, this jutsu I will project into the minds of every member of the sensory and barrier department of Konoha, it will cause them to hallucinate and see that there is one intruder that has intercepted their ranks, when in reality, it will be all of us." laughed Jesei as he performed the Ram, Monkey, and Tiger hand signs quickly.

"Mind Release: False Aptitude!" said Jesei quietly as he closed his eyes and focused on the location of the sensory department, all the while being sure to stay out of the range of the barrier.

The barrier and sensory department were not particularly busy that day, most of the jonin that were accompanying them have began to play a game of cards to pass the time.

"Sure does make the day go by slow when nothing of interest is going on." said Aoba as he was frustrated with loosing his previous game.

"Well, let's be glad that things have gone this smoothly for the past six months, and you should also try to focus better on which cards you shall play" said Raido with a grin.

One of the barrier-nin suddenly seemed to detect a disturbance from the location of the southern gate.

"I have detected an intruder, from the position of the southern gate, only one though." said Baraku, the chief senior officer of the barrier department.

"Oh geez, seems that you have jinxed us again Aoba." said Shikamaru as he happened to stumble by the premise of the department a few minutes prior.

"You said one intruder, okay, Raido, Genma, Shikamaru, and Ebisu, you all come with me, I want to settle this as quickly as possible." said Aoba as he and the other shinobi that were present headed out in the location that Baraku pointed out.

"Hmm, seems those fools fell for it, such a simple illusion, yet such a brilliant trick, now for Sheppard and his platoon to undertake their portion of the mission." said Jesei as he re-activated the Hiding in Camouflage Jutsu and quickly left the area.

"I will notify Sheppard now, would be best to also be on the lookout for those amongst the leaf shinobi that may have seen through my ruse as well, I cannot assume that everyone will fall for this trick, especially Naruto, with that Negative Emotion Sensing of his." said Jesei as a drop of sweat dripped from his brow.

"Sheppard, this is Jesei, I have completed my part, now I suggest that you hurry and do yours, place no more than one thousand explosive tags on the eastern and western gates, within the next ten minutes." said Jesei as he made the radio transmission as quick as possible to avoid being detected.

"Yes, I shall, and to ensure that I meet the prerequisite goal, five hundred explosives on each gate shall do, and then I will merely release the jutsu and bam, we have a commotion." said Sheppard as he instructed the soldiers that were with him to cover his area as he prepared to activate his jutsu.

"Multi-point Exploding Tag Formula Jutsu." said Sheppard as he instantly created one thousand tags with an explosive sealed inside.

"Good, now to quickly place them all on this wall, and then we will head to the other, once the eastern and western walls are taken care of, the konoha shinobi will surely realize what the real situation is, their could be casualties, are you men, the heart and soul of camp Abraham ready?" asked Sheppard with an excited tone.

"Yes, there is no better honor than to purge the heathers who are ignorant to the ideals of the Apathetic Judge, revolution starts now." said one of the soldiers with a passionate tone.

"Then it is game time, let's all place these tags quickly, then we will use the teleportation jutsu to quickly move to the other side of the village, and do the same their." said Sheppard as they began to act quickly.

Elsewhere, Aoba, Shikamaru, Raido, Genma, and Ebisu had arrived at the location that the barrier-nin had specified that an inturder were to be found.

"There is no one here, could it have been a fluke?" asked Ebisu as he looked around, but could not seem to detect a presence anywhere.

"I cannot find anything either, surely we were not fooled again, like that time against Pain!" said Raido with a furious tone.

"It would be best to alert other shinobi of this false alarm and assume the worst has taken place, let's all continue our search and contact those on border duty as well, the more help the merrier." said Aoba as he ran off in the direction where the southern gate's door was.

"Yes, we need to act quickly, I will use my Shadow Strangle Jutsu should we encounter an opponent who is hiding from a distance." said Shikamaru with confidence.

"I assume that Tsunade and Shizune are here for the same thing, see, they just arrived." said Genma as Tsunade was quick to arrive at the scene of where a false intrusion was detected.

"Aoba is going to check and see who is on border duty right now, the rest of us our trying to figure out what is going on here." said Raido with confusion.

"So, someone is really out their, it must of been them who were able to create a false detection on the part of our sensory and barrier department, dammit." said Tsunade.

"I know, and after all of the pride we took with being considered an unimpenetrable nation." said Ebisu.

"Forget that, let's be swift, Shizune is also almost here, she has sent out word to some more backup as well, I believe." said Tsunade as Shizune also arrived in the area.

Meanwhile, Lunesto was still burrowing underground with Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique.

"I am almost at my position, I seem to detect a large number of shinobi with considerable chakra gathered around the southern gate, seems Jesei was successful in his part after all, now all I have to do is wait for Sheppard and the others from Abraham to carry out their part before I can emerge from the ground, right in the middle of the village." said Lunesto as around ten bats were also flying in front of him in the dark secluded tunnel.

"I might be able to even find Naruto while I am in the village, if so, that will wrap up this mission much quicker than expected, at least I hope so, we do not want to start a full-scale war in any case." said Lunesto as he continued to close in on his position.

Sheppard and the platoon of soldiers accompanying him had finished placing five hundred explosive tags on the eastern wall, and were now ready to quickly progress to the western side to do the same.

"Good work, now let's use this scroll that Antoine gave me a few days prior to ensure that we do not waste more time than necessary getting to the other side of the gate." said Sheppard as he and the rest of his platoon activated a fuinjutsu that quickly moved them to the same location as Antoine and the soldiers stationed with him.

"I assume that you have placed the tags on that side?" asked Antoine.

"Yes, and now while the leaf is still distracted, time to do the same on this side!" said Sheppard as he and the other soldiers were quick to finish with their part in the plan.

"Good, it took only about five minutes to place all one thousand, now let's get some good distance from this gate before we activate the jutsu, would not want to get caught in the crossfire after all." said Antoine as he and camp Abraham moved into the woods further back from the Western Gate.

"While everyone is in a state of confusion, let's go!" said Sheppard with joy as he activated his jutsu causing the explosive tags on the eastern and western walls of Konohagakure to explode, collapsing them, and leaving the Leaf Village in a state of panic.

"What the fuck was that?" yelled Aoba as he could see the Eastern and Western walls collapse after a loud explosion.

"So, it seems your suspicions were right, someone is invading the village again after all of these years." said Sai as he arrived in the area via one of his ink birds.

"Were you able to see who it was?" asked Raido as he also arrived outside of the southern gate where Aoba and Sai were.

"No, I did see the walls collapse at the same time, must have been a kind of exploding tag, or a jutsu that employs the use of them." said Sai with a worried tone.

"I see, well, we need to find Sakura, and Naruto." said Shizune as she also arrived on the scene.

"I hear you loud and clear, the rest of you stay here and continue with the search for those intruders, I can handle this." said Sai as he quickly flew off using his Super Beast Scroll Jutsu.

Sheppard and his men stepped out of the forest and saw the Eastern and Western walls collapsed.

"Yes, this phase of the plan is also a go, now all we have to do is wait for the golden hero to take the bait, then everything about this mission will be a success." said Sheppard.

"Sir, let me venture out a little to see if I cannot detect a sighting of the golden hero, he could be headed towards this location for all we know." said one of the soldiers, who was willing to take the initiative.

"Alright, but me and Antoine will be on the lookout for anyone who may be aware of our own location." said Sheppard with a cautious tone.

Jesei had also witnessed the collapse of the Eastern and Western walls of Konoha.

"So Abraham was able to do it after all, Antoine must be over their too, and Lunesto should be about to dig his way straight into the Leaf, yep, things have ran smoothly after all, and without a moment too soon." said Jesei.

"Really, well, this part might add a little of a change to the summary once you return." said Sasuke as he immediately appeared behind Jesei with his sword the the suit-clad old man's throat.

"Don't be a funny man, one word, and you die!" said Sasuke as he had also detected the presence of camp Abraham as well.

 _ **To be Continued next time with Chapter 006...**_


	6. Exalted Shinobi

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 006: Exalted Shinobi**

Sasuke had appeared behind Jesei, without the latter realizing it, and pointed his sword towards the throat of the man with a menacing look.

"Any smart remarks, and you are a dead man!" said Sasuke with a serious tone.

"I knew someone would find one of us eventually, I just did not know it would be you, and that I would have gotten myself caught in such a way." said Jesei.

"I also know the location of your other men as well, this little invasion of yours is over now." said Sasuke as he had his Rinnegan focused on the location of Camp Abraham.

"Hehehe, permission to make light of your futile attempt to seem threatening?" asked Jesei with a joking tone.

"That just sealed it." said Sasuke as he swung his sword straight through Jesei's neck, beheading the man where he stood.

"I gave you a warning, but then again, I should know that your kind can never be reasoned with." said Sasuke with an annoyed expression.

"Now, if only that were the real you." said Sasuke as he detected another presence in the woods further out to the south.

"Good, good, you saw through my Mirage Clone, but then again, with that weird little eye of yours, I expected no less." said Jesei as he came walking up out of hiding towards Sasuke.

"I honestly thought that I had killed you, guess I have to give you credit their, but this time I will not make a mistake, my eyes can see through your deception." said Sasuke as he put his sword into a striking position.

"You are not going to get in the way of this great expedition of ours today, I am afraid." said Jesei as he pulled out the scroll that Lunesto had given him earlier.

"Some kind of trap, best to wait and see." thought Sasuke to himself.

"You see, when faced with a man and his sword, it is always wise to counter with a similar plan of attack." said Jesei as he released the seal on his scroll, summoning a sword with a green hilt. The blade was decorated with vines and cranberies painted on it.

"Such a fancy sword you have their, but I am afraid this is over." said Sasuke as he rapidly started running towards Jesei's location.

"Oh boy, I did not count on getting into a skirmish this early, but if I can distract him long enough, Lunesto and Antoine can finish their parts and Naruto will receive the invitation." thought Jesei to himself.

"Chidori!" yelled Sasuke as he thrusted his hand, surrounded by black-enhanced lightning towards Jesei's chest.

"Oh shit, I heard of this one." said Jesei as he was able to narrowly avoid the attack.

Jesei swung his sword towards Sasuke as he was able to dodge the Chidori strike.

"Huh, simple tricks." said Sasuke as he vanished immediately, with a small rock taking his place. Jesei's sword cut through the rock instead.

"Was that the Body Flicker Technique, no, it had to be something else, I cannot find him anywhere." said Jesei to himself with a nervous tone.

"Fire Release: Great Dragonfire Technique!" yelled Sasuke as he suddenly appeared from behind a tree west of Jesei's location.

Three large draconian heads of flame honed in onto Jesei's location.

"Fuck, this is also not good, I do not want to face this man for too long." said Jesei as he started to quickly form some hand signs to counter.

"Eloquent Spacial Barrier Placement Technique." said Jesei as a vineyard of plants and berries grew around Jesei, a purplish charm around the growth deflected the brunt of Sasuke's attack.

"What was that, I never heard of a barrier like this." thought Sasuke to himself.

"You are just wasting your time right now Sasuke, this is not an invasion my friend, this is an invitation to the great golden hero, Naruto Uzumaki." said Jesei with a proud tone.

"Invitation, Naruto, what are you trying to do with him, whatever it is, I will make sure he does not have to soil his hands with a piece of trash like you." said Sasuke as he put his sword away.

"Oho, but I am not speaking of a battle between Naruto, rather, an opportunity to leave monotony behind, to leave this worthless routine of life behind, to ascend into a conciousness of clarity and equality." said Jesei as he had his sights set on focusing on the big picture of his mission.

Elsewhere, Naruto had arrived on the scene along with Hinata, they were both notified by Sai that someone had destroyed the eastern and western walls of the village.

"Who is responsible for this?" asked Hinata.

"Whoever it is, they decided to take advantage of our time of peace to strike." said Naruto with a look of duty.

"We were given the impression that someone had made an intrusion from the southern gate of the village, but once we arrived, their was no one their." said Raido.

"I see, then allow me to detect them, this will not take long at all." said Naruto as he entered his Nine Tails Chakra Mode.

"Naruto, be careful, I do not want you to get hurt." said Hinata as she gave her husband a big hug.

"Don't worry my precious angel, I will not fail this time." said Naruto as he winked at Hinata before vanishing in a flash of light.

"He sure is quick, but it would be best for the rest of us to continue to back him up by traveling in the direction he flew off to." said Ebisu.

"Sakura, you are here." said Genma as he noticed that she and Tsunade had also arrived.

"Don't think we are here just for any medical provisions today, I am in a rather bad mood." said Tsunade as she had grown upset with the boredom of being in the Konoha Council.

"Hey, you were the one who offered to take that position, and now you hate it?" asked Sakura.

"Ah hell, let's just get this started, I do not want any more collateral damage to befall the village." said Tsunade as she, Sakura, Genma, Raido, Aoba, Ebisu, Sai, and Shikamaru all headed towards the direction that Naruto ran off.

"That is the eastern wall we are headed towards, that must be where the enemy really is." said Shikamaru.

"That is what I was thinking after I could not find any traces of the enemy around the southern gate." said Aoba.

"We need to stay focused none the less, the quicker we stop this invasion, the better off the rebuilding process will be." said Genma.

"Well with Naruto on our side, this battle will be over probably by the time we get their." said Sai with a laugh.

"Don't say that, I want to be able to join in on the fun, dammit!" said Tsunade as she was determined to be able to contribute in one way.

"Oh goodness, Lady Hokage, just relax." said Sakura with a look of comical disbelief.

"Shizune is staying behind to heal any of the civilians that were hurt by the initial assault, so this will all run smoothly." said Ebisu as the group were almost at the location that Naruto headed towards.

In Kakashi's office, he was staring out of the window watching the events unfold.

"Naruto and Sasuke will deal with this, I am certain, but just who is behind this assault, and how were they able to get through our barrier team's defenses without much effort." thought Kakashi to himself as he continued to ponder what was occurring outside of the gate.

Hinata had stayed behind and decided to assist Shizune in looking for anyone who may have been injured when the walls were destroyed. Tsunade, Sakura, Sai, Shikamaru, Raido, Aoba, Genma, and Ebisu were all in pursuit of Naruto and the location of the eastern wall.

Antoine and his soldiers from Camp Abraham were in hiding as one of the soldiers took the initiative to look for Naruto, or another leaf shinobi's approach to their location.

"I don't see anything yet, but I am sure that..." is all the soldier had time to say as Naruto had struck him was a Rasengan in such a quick manner, it had appeared to be like a strike of lightning.

"Is that Naruto Uzumaki?" asked Sheppard as he was surprised to see such an occurrence take place.

"Yep, the golden hero, deserving of the name, he is an exalted shinobi after all." said Antoine as he, Sheppard, and the remaining soldiers stepped from behind the forestry and confronted the Uzumaki.

"You are the ones responsible for this, what are you planning to do, start an invasion, or perhaps you are from one of the smaller countries and feel you were somehow wronged by us, which is it?" asked Naruto with a stern tone.

"I guess ya have seen it all, but we are here for none of those reasons, we are here for you." said Antoine with a smirk as Sheppard immediately stepped from behind the former, and used his jutsu to activate five hundred explosive tags to zero in on Naruto's location.

"It looks like one is doing the talking, while the other is taking their time to strike." said Naruto as he quickly ran out of the range of the attack, avoiding the explosion.

"I will ask you all again, what is it you want with me?" asked Naruto with a tone of vigilance.

"We are here to offer you an invitation, that last jutsu was just to test your reaction time, and it was wonderful as we predicted." said Antoine as he and Sheppard stood side by side in front of Naruto.

"One of you better take that wounded soldier and get out of here, you're jobs are over, it is our turn now." said Sheppard as he had his sights set on finishing his mission.

"Yes sir." said another one of the nineteen soldiers as they headed towards the location of their injured ally to pick them up.

"Shaaanaroooo!" yelled Sakura as he quickly arrived on the scene kicking the soldier into a tree and preventing him from helping his ally.

"Are you worms the ones who did this!" yelled Tsunade as she performed a drop kick around the remaining sixteen soldiers sending them all flying off into the woods.

"My word, backup sure is incredible in this village." said Sheppard as he whole platoon was out of the picture in quick display of kunoichi power.

"Sakura, Tsunade, where is everyone else?" asked Naruto with enthusiasm, as he enjoyed seeing Tsunade and Sakura perform their combination attack.

"They are right behind us in fact, get ready to see it for yourself." said Sakura.

"Multi-Shadow Possession Jutsu!" said Shikamaru as Sheppard and Antoine were caught in the jutsu without even noticing.

"Fuck, I forgot about the possibility of this jutsu being used against us." said Sheppard as he was upset with the events that were transpiring.

Aoba, Genma, Raido, and Ebisu were all surrounding Antoine and Sheppard while Naruto, Sakura, Sai, and Tsunade were to the left.

"Well, we got their attention, safe to say, hehehehe." laughed Antoine as sweat poured down his face.

"If you comply peacefully, then nothing will happen, trust me." said Tsunade with a stern voice.

"Ohh, please forgive us, we are sorry for blowing down your walls, which I must add, needed a redecoration anyway, hahaha." laughed Antoine.

"This is hardly the time to play dumb, are their anymore of you around the area, do you have any backup on the way, answer now." said Genma as he pulled out a shuriken and held it to Sheppard's head.

"Look dude, I am just a small chip in this plan, we are only here to offer Naruto an invitation from our boss, that is all." said Sheppard.

"An invitation, what do you mean?" asked Raido.

"That just seems like an excuse to get out of the inevitable." said Shikamaru.

"No, he is serious, we are here to offer Naruto and invitation to come to our city and meet with our boss, he is your biggest fan." said Antoine.

"As if we will fall for a trap like that." said Sakura with anger.

"I figured that it would end up like this, but of course, if we caused the center of your village to be flat-lined, I am sure that tone would change." said Antoine with a grin as he knew of Lunesto's presence from within the village.

"What do you mean, I did not sense anyone suspicious in the village, perhaps you are just trying to fool us, that will not work." said Naruto as he walked over to Antoine and placed his hand of the suit-claded man's forehead.

"Aoba, let me channel your mind reading technique through my charka arms, this will allow us to thoroughly analyze what these guys are really up to." said Naruto.

"Hey that is a good idea, well, here it goes." said Aoba as one of Naruto's chakra hands grabbed Aoba just as he performed his jutsu, causing it to be channeled through Naruto.

"Such ingenious, if only Naruto acted like this all of the time." said Sai to himself.

"Nope." said Antoine as he turned into a plasma-like substance and disappeared into a ball of light.

"The hell, what did he do?" asked Naruto with confusion.

"You are either going to except our invitation or this fucking village is going down, I swear." said Antoine, who still in the form of a ball of light, flew off into the direction of the center of the village.

"Aoba, Raido, and Shikamaru, you three stay here, Sakura, Sai, you two come with me, the rest of you patrol the area and look for anymore of these guys." said Naruto as he quickly followed the trail of Antoine, running at a quick pace.

"Man, things sure are getting heated up, kind of exciting even." said Raido.

"Yeah, but I was really wanting to see what was in that guy's mind, last time I tried this technique, Kisame also interfered, man, I am no good for this after all." said Aoba.

"Listen, this is no time to be fooling around, let's keep this guy here under our control for now, we will wait to hear a response back from Naruto before we proceed any further." said Shikamaru as he turned his attention towards Sheppard.

"Hehehe, you heathens will not succeed here today, because you do not understand what our goal is in the first place." said Sheppard with joy.

"Well, whatever it is, I ensure you that I am ready for it." said Shikamaru with a look of determination.

"Hehehe, you seem so sure of yourself, but trust me dude, this is not an invasion, this is improvisation." said Sheppard as he thought of what Jesei was up to.

Jesei had been struck by Sasuke's Chidori Senbon and had fallen to the ground.

"I can see the chakra of Naruto and many others taking care of things over their, Sakura's chakra is over their as well." said Sasuke to himself.

Jesei's body slowly faded away again, as the real one emerged from the ground.

"This mirage clone strategy will not work for much longer I need to do something drastic now." said Jesei as he formed the Tiger, Snake, Pig, Rat, and Board hand signs in rapid succession.

"Mind Release: Self Doubt." said Jesei as he started to focus his chakra onto Sasuke.

"You make me sick." said Sasuke as he Susano'o formed into it's non-stabilized complete form and pointed an arrow wrapped in the flame of Ameterasu directly at the old man.

"Fuck, the fully formed Susano'o, and in it's Eternal version, if my jutsu does not connect, I am dead, fuck!" said Jesei with a sincere look of worry.

"Vanish from the sight of my eyes, you uncouth vagabond." said Sasuke as his Susano'o shot an arrow surrounded by the flames of Ameterasu at high speeds towards the location of Jesei.

"This, is, bad." said Jesei as he had believed that his jutsu did not even effect Sasuke.

"I win." said Sasuke as he closed his eyes to wait for the sound of screams from Jesei.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 007...-**


	7. Sasuke's Mission

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 007: Sasuke's Mission**

Sasuke's Susano'o had fired an arrow wrapped in the flames of the Ameterasu swiftly towards the location of Jesei Leikough.

"I win." proclaimed Sasuke as he closed his eyes awaiting the screams of Jesei.

"Define I win, I mean seriously, this phrase of utter absolution is not something that someone like you deserves to use." said Jesei as he appeared behind Sasuke and rammed his sword towards the back of the Uchiha.

"Please, Chidori Current, die!" yelled Sasuke as he channeled his Six Paths enhanced Chidori through the ground catching Jesei in a stream of empowered lightning.

"Awwww, but come on, I mean we were just starting to know each other, and now it has to end so soon?" asked Jesei as his body was entangled with vines with berries growing out of them, and the same purplish aura that had appeared earlier.

"What kind of jutsu is this, that is three times now he has survived one of my moves." said Sasuke who was getting frustrated.

"Look my friend, this is a small invitation, a game if you will, I already told you why we are here, and if you are too damn stupid to understand it, then the next time you try to show any sign of an offensive strike, I will not stand quietly." said Jesei as he looked towards Sasuke with a menacing look.

"Don't expect me to be intimidated by the likes of you, I am the Uchiha's anchor, their salvation, it is up to me to travel this world to learn more about it, and you have taught me a valuable lesson, to never become a bitter, foolish old man." said Sasuke as he ran towards Jesei with is sword in tow.

"I guess he has decided to go with direct strikes, at least it is not the Susano'o, that would have killed me for sure." thought Jesei to himself as he pulled out his own sword to combat Sasuke.

Elsewhere, Antoine, in the form of a ball of plasma energy, was flying towards the center of the village of Konoha, with Naruto in tow.

"I will not let you destroy this village, it has seen enough trouble as is." said Naruto as he quickly gained speed and was closing in on Antoine.

"This man is fast, but I am almost their, I just hope that Lunesto is ready to invoke an ambush from underground once I do arrive, that should allow giving him the invitation much easier." thought Antoine to himself as he closed in on his position.

Sasuke had captured a glimpse of the flying ball of energy from a distance during his skirmish with Jesei.

"Komittomentto: Sacred Vineyard Absolon Technique!" said Jesei as his sword started to produce prickly briers with red berries and blue-like aura that attached to Sasuke.

"This technique is the special property of my sword, I will not reveal it's name at this time though, but you should be honored none the less to witness it's capabilities." said Jesei as he was trying to keep Sasuke from leaving the area.

"I don't have time for this bullshit." said Sasuke solemnly as he delivered a quick kick with his right leg, which he had also infused with his Lightning chakra, to the head of Jesei.

"Ohh, Damn!" exclaimed Jesei as he fell to the ground with his sword landing right beside him.

"I will not give you time to allow your sword to use it's ability, besides, I see something that presents itself as more dangerous than you, but don't fret, I will return to kill you shortly." said Sasuke as he focused on Naruto and Antoine heading towards the center of the village.

"Amenotejikara." proclaimed Sasuke as he vanished from the sight of Jesei as he was able to regain himself off the ground.

"Amenotejikara, is that the name of his jutsu which allows him to teleport?" asked Jesei as he was upset with himself for not being able to stall Sasuke any longer.

Sakura and Sai were following behind Naruto as he continued to pursue Antoine into the center of the village, with many on-lookers in panic.

"Naruto is just to quick right now, but if we are at least able to see him, it will not take long to reach the center of the village." said Sakura.

"I just hope that we can stop this maniac before he does decide to do something bad to our village." said Sai as he was flying on one of his birds that he had created with the Ninja Art: Super Beast Scroll Jutsu.

"It looks like they are stopping over their, that ball of light appears to be turning back into a person again." said Sai as he was able to see over the building surrounding the central avenue of Konoha.

"Okay, I will be ready to deliver a devastating strike as soon as we arrive in the vicinity of the area." said Sakura as she started to store her chakra in the diamond on her forehead.

Antoine had morphed back into his human form and landed in a spot were the civilians had fled from.

"This will do just fine, it is around three in the afternoon now, I don't want to spend too much more time allowing the enemy to analyze us anymore." said Antoine as Naruto had arrived a few second later.

"That's it, never stop pursuing the enemy, you did well, but now I suppose that I should honor my promise and destroy the village from this location like I said I would." said Antoine.

"Sorry their, you will not even have to to lift a finger if you try something like that, I will ensure it." said Naruto as his eyes glowed orange and fierce.

"Whoooo boy, this guy is beaming with power, now I see why the boss wants to meet him so badly." said Antoine with a drop of sweat falling from the left side of his eye.

"You still want to go through with this, I mean it will definatley not be worth it." said Naruto as he looked at Antoine waiting to make a move.

"Lookout below Naruto!" yelled Sakura as she lifted up her leg and lowered it towards the head of Antoine.

"Cherry Blossom Swift Impact!" yelled Sakura as her leg was an inch a way from Antoine.

"If that hits me, I die." said Antoine as he was able to dodge Sakura's attack in the nick of time.

"Good job, but my turn." said Naruto as he quickly delivered a punch that made contact with Antoine's stomach sending him to the ground.

"Good, good, keep going." said Antoine as he struggled to get up with a little blood dripping out of his mouth.

"He is acting strange, almost as if he is stalling as well." thought Naruto to himself.

"Sakura, keep going at him, I am going to follow behind you, and Sai, you keep an eye out from the air." said Naruto.

"That sounds good, it will be Team 7's greatest combo yet." said Sakura as she started to run towards Antoine.

"These kids sure are good, though Naruto is the only one I really need to focus on, oh and by the way Lunesto, now is the time." thought Antoine to himself as he was nervously awaiting Lunesto's arrival from underground.

"Chakra Scalpel Slash!" yelled Sakura as she formed a sharp chakra blade around her arm and struck Antoine with is, halting his movement.

"Damn, I was too focused on Naruto, that Sakura was able to land even the smallest blow on me, and now I cannot move my right leg all that well." said Antoine to himself as Naruto created a Rasengan in his hand.

"Just be glad that I did not go with the Mini-Tailed Beast Rasengan." said Naruto as he thrusted his hand close to Antoine's face.

"Glass Release: Reflective Barrier Jutsu!" yelled a voice from underground as a tower of glass around twenty feet emerged from underground and separated Naruto from Antoine. The Rasengan was able to put a large crack in the glass, but was not able to seep through.

"Antoine, sorry to leave you hanging, but I wanted to wait as long as possible to allow Sheppard and his men a chance to get away." said Lunesto as he was dusting himself off.

"It is a little too late for that, they were all either caught or beaten down." said Antoine as he looked onwards towards Naruto, Sakura, and Sai.

"Another one, and he was hiding underground." said Naruto as he formed two chakra tails from behind to act as makeshift hands.

"He looks like an angel, he is such a beauty." said Lunesto as he was awe-struck by the demonstration that Naruto was putting on.

"I suggest that you take our invitation Naruto, we mean you no harm, seriously, just trust us, let your innocence feel your heart." said Lunesto with tears of joy from finally getting to meet Naruto face-to-face.

"Well sorry to rain on your parade, but I am not interested, especially if threatening me by using the village is the best you go." said Naruto with a smirk.

"Okay then, well if that is how you feel, Sonar Amplification Jutsu!" yelled Lunesto as many bats emerged from underground and began to project loud waves of sound towards the Uzumaki.

"Heh, that is some trick, but, Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!" yelled Naruto as he created nine clones of himself, each in Nine Tails Chakra Mode, and had them use a Rasegan on the bats.

The bats were all destroyed and the loud noise ceased. "Thank goodness, my ears were almost bleeding from that." said Sakura with a distraught look.

"Hmmm, these guys look tough, but not tough enough for Naruto, I wonder if they will even need me." thought Sai to himself.

"Hmmm, it would be best to wait for Jesei to send me a message on what to do next, Naruto is not taking the bet, but at the same time, we have to persist." thought Antoine to himself.

"Team Seven are the only people that Naruto should have to rely on, not you freaks." said Sakura as she stood beside Naruto with her chakra scalpel ready.

"Oho, really, well the Apathetic Judge has a personal connection with you Naruto, and if you would just take the chance to hear him out, I know for a fact that you would be ecstatic on what you were to witness." said Lunesto with joy.

"So, you appear to be faking an invasion just to get my attention, really now, is that all of the class you have?" asked Naruto with anger.

"Well, every man is allowed to do things the way they do them, and we will not give up until our goal is accomplished, no matter what." said Antoine.

"That can change." said a voice as a small pebble that was laying beside Sakura disappeared, and Sasuke teleporting to it's stead.

"S, Sas, Sasuke, it is you!" said Sakura with a look of shock.

"Sakura, you could have gotten hurt last night when you were outside alone." said Sasuke as he put his only arm on her shoulder with a feeling of embrace.

"Heh, I am grateful to see that you are doing well." said Sakura with a look of joy.

Sasuke put his ring and index finger onto Sakura's forehead before exclaiming, "Maybe another time, Sakura, but I still love you."

"Sasuke, you..." thought Sakura as tears began to roll from her eyes.

"Sasuke, just on time, you must have been the one who sent that hawk to Kakashi, I saw it while I was training this morning." said Naruto.

"Yes, their is another man near the southern gate, but I was not able to execute him, probably because that would upset you, eh Naruto?" asked Sasuke making a little fun of Naruto.

"You are talking about Jesei Leikough, you see, he was in pursuit of Naruto and Hinata while they were on their vacation, we were trying to give you the invitation back then." said Lunesto.

"I had the feeling something was off, but I was not for sure." said Naruto.

"Well, now that the whole Team Seven is here, I guess it is time to hand this scroll over to Naruto, you can take it or leave it." said Antoine.

"Yeah, you were right about our desire to destroy the village being a ploy, but we knew that you would be their to protect it, because you are the golden hero after all." said Lunesto.

"I have heard enough of this, time to shut you two up." said Sasuke as his Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan began to form.

"Just wait a little Sasuke, perhaps I will take this scroll after all." said Naruto with his hand reached out towards Antoine.

"Naruto, are you serious, it could be a trap." said Sakura with concern.

"Don't worry, their is no trap that can harm me while I am in this mode." said Naruto with a stern voice as he looked into the eyes of Antoine and Lunesto.

"So, you decided to do it after all." said Antoine with a tone of happiness.

"I will accept on two conditions, you leave this village, and you tell me about this 'boss' of yours." said Naruto.

"Hehehehe, I thought you would never ask." said Lunesto as he lavender-colored eyes lit up with joy.

Elsewhere, there was a figure looking down from one of the mountains further back from behind the mountain where the faces of the six Hokage where marked.

"Naruto Uzumaki has taken this invitation, and thus the lord cried no more as his tears were sutured into his mind and his breath was quelled as he was happy to see his child kneel before him." said the figure, who had long spike light green hair and a majestic white kimono.

"I will leave now, Naruto would be wise to take this chance to meet the true human." said the man as he started to run down the mountain range, out of sight.

Naruto had asked about the boss of the shinobi that had attacked his village and offered him this scroll claiming it was an invitation.

"Trust us, and even if you don't just read the contents of this scroll, it will speak to you, on many levels, but don't read it right away though, you will know when it is time." said Antoine.

"You did not answer Naruto's second question, who do you work for?" asked Sasuke with anger.

"Well, how do we put it, we work for the nicest, most passionate, and hardworking man to ever live, it is because of his dedication that we have the upper hand right now, despite you not realizing otherwise." said Antoine with a tone of pride.

"Yes, and he is a good friend of mine personally." said Jesei as he had arrived in the central avenue of Konoha as well.

"I see you had managed to make your way back as well." said Sasuke.

"Don't worry now, we are about to leave, but make sure to listen to what Antoine told you Naruto, do not open that scroll until you feel it is time." said Jesei with a smile.

"Oh, and if you want more information about our boss, just torture Sheppard, that guy that was next to me, I am sure you can get a lot of information out of him, hahahaha." laughed Lusesto.

"Well, we don't need him anymore, so farewell for now." said Jesei as the three shinobi used the Flame Body Flicker Technique and left the area.

"We should have killed them here and now." said Sasuke with anger.

"It would have been pointless, I wanted to see what this scroll says, if they are serious about what they did, then I should at least take the time to look this over." said Naruto as he decided to go to Kakashi's office to talk to him alone.

"I know I just got here Sakura, but I must leave for a while, I have to know where these imbeciles came from." said Sasuke as he put his hand onto Sakura's head and smiled before teleporting away.

"He left just like that, huh." said Sai.

"Be careful Sasuke, and one day, please come home for good." said Sakura.

Naruto and notified Aoba, Raido, Shikamaru, Tsunade, Shizune, Genma, and Ebisu all of the events that transpired and was now headed towards Kakashi's office.

"Maybe Kakashi will know how to handle this best." said Naruto with a thought he could not quite shake in the back of his mind.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 008...-**


	8. Internal Welfare

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 008: Internal Welfare**

Naruto was headed towards the Hokage's mansion in order to speak with Kakashi about the events that have transpired.

"What could any of this mean, who would be out their that is willing enough to send an army to stage an invasion just to get my own attention?" asked Naruto to himself as he arrived at the door of the Hokage's mansion.

Elsewhere, Aoba, Raido, Genma, Ebisu, Shikamaru, Tsunade, Sai, and Sakura were discussing how to handle things in an orderly manner.

"I think it would be best if I went and retrieved this Sheppard guy, my Mind Reading Technique has gotten better since the war, and we would probably be able to find out just what we need to know." said Aoba thinking about what Lunesto and Antoine had said earlier.

"I will come with you, last thing we need is to fall into a trap set by those guys, without any back up." said Raido.

"The two of us should be enough, the rest of you decide what to do with those soldiers that were with Sheppard." said Aoba.

"I think we should just lock them up into a jail cell until they are willing to co-operate and help fix the damage that they decided to inflict on our village." said Ebisu.

"Not a half bad plan, any information we could get from those soldiers, Sheppard probably has it, since he appeared to be the captain of that unit." said Shikamaru.

"Me and Tsunade will follow Naruto towards the Hokage's mansion, since everything is decided, good luck." said Sakaru as she and Tsunade quickly ran down the streets in the direction of the mansion.

"Okay, let's go, however, me and Shikamaru will wait right here, you and Raido better be careful of any possible dangers that those bastards may have hidden." said Genma to Aoba.

"Roger, let's go Raido, the sooner we get this Sheppard guy into interrogation, the better." said Aoba as he and Raido ran towards the Eastern gate.

"Don't you find it strange though, that someone would go through all of this trouble just to offer a simple invitation to Naruto, I mean why not come to the village yourself and do it?' asked Genma.

"That is a good question, maybe it is someone who does not have a way to do it, or it could be someone with a disability, only time will tell." said Shikamaru trying to think of who the boss of these invaders could be.

Naruto had arrived into Kakashi's office. "I am sure you have seen what took place down their, right Kakashi-sensei?" asked Naruto.

"Yes, some invaders took down the Eastern and Western walls in an attempt to rile up the seeds of war again, though they have appeared to fail in that aspect." said Kakashi.

"Well, that is not all that entails, you see, the whole gist of this attack was to get my attention specifically in order to give me this scroll." said Naruto as he pulled out a scroll with strange characters and showed it to Kakashi.

"You mean to tell me that this whole assault was orchestrated just to offer you a scroll, is someone trying to take you down, it could be possible since you are a war hero now, it might even be that Toneri Otsutsuki again." said Kakashi thinking back to that day.

"No, I believed Toneri, and this is not his work, he used puppet-like creatures to work for him, this were soldiers, who from what I understand, were under orders from this guy named Sheppard, but I believe Sheppard was also under the authority of this Jesei, Antoine, and Lunesto." said Naruto.

"Really, well it seems that someone that we have never met before has somehow figured all of this information and was able to devise a means of planning a false invasion, similar to Orochimaru and Pain's, in order to get our attention, and then they leave us with a mere scroll as an accommodation." said Kakashi who was a little confused on the matter at hand.

"In any case, it would be best to wait a few days to decide how to deal with this, Naruto, I do not want you to open this scroll right now, it could be some sort of trick, we will wait two days before I send out a task force to investigate the whereabouts of those three men that left after the assualt was concluded." said Kakashi to Naruto.

"Okay, I will wait two days, like you said, to read the contents of this scroll, but trust me, there is no trap that will catch me by surprise, especially with the power I have now." said Naruto thinking of his wife, Hinata.

"Don't get too arrogant, hehehe, even the strongest beings in existence can still have some sort of weakness." said Kakashi as Sakura and Tsunade had arrived in the office at about this time.

"You are here, I will brief you on what me and Naruto had just discussed, does that sound good?" asked Kakashi with a smile.

"Alright, but as long as the answer is a concrete and decisive one." said Tsunade.

Aoba and Raido had arrived at the location of where Sheppard was still tied down by Shikamaru's make-shift Shadow Binding Shuriken Jutsu.

"So, they left me behind after all, hehehe, you will not get anything out of me, I would never sell out the honor of Camp Abraham, do you here me!" said Sheppard with a look of determination.

"Sorry to shake your morale here buddy, but your friends left you here on purpose for the exact reason of interrogation, I guess they are not true comrades of yours after all." said Raido as he activated a paralysis jutsu on Sheppard in order for him to be restrained after Shikamaru's jutsu was deactivated.

"Hehehe, that is where you are wrong, you see, my comrades have sent me here with the exact purpose of giving you all information, the Knights of Dawn were to give an invitation to Naruto specifically, and my job is to give one to Konohagakure." laughed Sheppard as Aoba and Raido carried the paralyzed man back to the Interrogation Unit of the ANBU.

"I don't know what kind of tricks you are tying to pull over on us, but I assure you, they will not work." said Aoba as he and Raido were closing in on the interrogation building.

Elsewhere, Sasuke had arrived at the former location of what was once the Valley of the End, with the ability of Amenotajikara.

"Naruto is sure that he will be able to handle this, but I cannot shake the feeling that some other power is at work here, and whatever it could be, I will be sure to destroy it with my eyes which see all." said Sasuke as he sat on a rock near the destroyed valley and thought of what his next move would be.

"Maybe, yes, I can go ask him, he should have some sort of information on this Antoine, Jesei, and Lunesto, I can feel it." said Sasuke as he headed in the direction of the border of the Land of Fire and the Land of Sound.

"Seems you have ran into a bit of trouble." said a voice from behind the woods of the forest that Sasuke was running through.

"Jugo, you were waiting for me here after all, so you must have been notified on what has occurred from the animals around here." said Sasuke.

"Not in detail, but from what I can feel with my Sage Chakra and yours, it seems that something has stirred you up." said Jugo.

"You bet, that foolish old man is mine next time we meet, no one simply leaves a battle and says it was for the sole purpose of an invitation, that pisses me off to no end." said Sasuke as he deactivated his Eternal Mangeyou Sharingan and his Rinnegan.

"Based on the direction you are headed in, it seems you want to go talk to them, eh?" asked Jugo with curiosity.

"Yeah, it has been over two years, it would be of my best interest to see what they may know." said Sasuke as he and Jugo continued to run in the direction of the border of the Land of Sound.

Antoine, Jesei, and Lunesto had arrived a an area surrounded by Mountains, a large lake, and several acres of woods east of the Land of Stone.

"I think Naruto will be itching to get the information of what to do next from that damned Kakashi." said Antoine as he had taken off his shoes and was relaxing on a chair near the lake.

"I hear that, but don't worry, Naruto will follow the directions, I know it, he will be so happy once he arrives in Lazarus." said Lunesto who was swimming in the lake.

"You two are always like this, so relaxed, what if that Uchiha finds his way here, or what if someone else is also on the prow for our location." said Jesei who was smoking a tobacco pipe as he was reading through a document.

"Well, excuse me Mr. Old Ass Boring Dude, not all of us our uptight and estranged." said Lunesto with a joking tone.

"I will let that one slide, just wait until we get back home, you will wish you had never said that." said Jesei as he had sealed his sword back into the scroll that he was given.

"I had received the item in my scroll, I assume the same is for you two?" asked Jesei.

"Yep, Heiwa is just as good as I remembered him." said Antoine speaking of the item that he received in his scroll.

"Mine will come in handy too, it has been a while since we had used these weapons." said Lunesto with joy.

A figure then appeared suddenly, standing on the lake that Lunesto was swimming in.

"It would be in your best interest to return home as soon as possible, with the recent turn of events related to that incident in Konoha, we could have some spies after us, we do not want anyone to figure out the location of our village." said the man with long, light blue spike hair.

"I read ya loud and clear, just give us thirty more minutes, we will be back home around eight in the evening, how does that sound, Dreatoen?" asked Antoine in response to the man.

"Yes, that should be fine, oh, and Jesei, be on the lookout for that vermin who is in the border of the Land of Sound, he will be a pain in the ass if not dealt with properly." said Dreatoen as he used the Flame Body Flicker Technique to dissipate.

"Who could be in the Land of Sound, that place is not in business, not since six years ago." said Lunesto as he had emerged from under the water.

"I have an idea, though I would not be sure why the Apathetic Judge would consider that worthless Sannin to be any trouble to him." said Jesei with a menacing look.

"In any case, we better head out now, no need in beating around the bushes, let's get home before Dreatoen gets mad at us." said Antoine as the three men prepared to head towards their home village, Lazarus.

Tsunade and Sakura were fully briefed on the events that were discussed between himself and Naruto.

"So we will wait two days before deciding to act, any particular reason why it is two days?" asked Tsunade with curiosity.

"Well, not really, it's just that we will need a little time to see if the promise that these rouges made to Naruto is genuine, I mean, they could just want him to leave the village, so that there would be no one who could defend it." said Kakashi.

"I would not worry about defending this village, I will ensure that a single one of those pieces of shit set foot into our village again." said Tsunade as she walked out of the office to return to her own office and deal with her duties as the sole member of the Konoha Council.

"You should go home to Hinata for now, Naruto, and keep that scroll in good hands." said Kakashi to Naruto.

"I am going home too, I just hope that nothing bad comes from any of this." said Sakura as she left the office.

"See you later Kakashi-sensei, I will be back tomorrow around one in the afternoon, for a follow-up report." said Naruto as he was headed to his home.

"Okay, I will think of something, I promise." said Kakashi as he turned on the blue night lights with his former Mangeyou patterns on them to decorate the office in the moonlight that had now fallen.

"I always prefer a solemn atmosphere at night after all, Obito, seems that someone else is trying to stir up trouble, just watch over Naruto for me, okay?" asked Kakashi in his mind as he was thinking of Obito, Rin, and Minato as he would always during this time of day.

Naruto had arrived at the front door to his house as eight in the evening had arrived.

"My goodness, I heard all of the ruckus, but I knew that you would handle everything." said Hinata as he hugged Naruto with joy.

"Yeah, I will help with repairing the eastern and western walls tomorrow, but I want to show you something, those men that invaded the village, they did so in order to give me this scroll." said Naruto as he was not hiding anything from his beloved wife.

"Huh, what could it be?" asked Hinata with a look of concern.

"It is an invitation of some sorts, seems that the boss of the men that attacked this village, is my so-called number one biggest fan." said Naruto recalling back to ealier in the day.

"I see, but you should not worry about that for now, I have your favorite meal prepared." said Hinata as she and Naruto walked into the kitchen.

"Miso Pork Ramen with extra Sauce, oh Hinata you sure know how to please a man!" said Naruto who had not eaten all day.

"After this, we can go outside and look at the stars together." said Hinata with a look of happiness.

"We will do more than just that, my dear, I want my angel with the most lovely eyes to feel nothing but joy this entire night." said Naruto as he finished eating and got up to hold Hinata in his arms.

"Naruto, uhhh...ummm, thank...you." said Hinata as she began to blush.

"No problem, now let's go look at those stars, and then maybe we can go the the hot spring afterwards." said Naruto with joy.

"Y...es, Naruto that is it, show how good of a man you are, until the dirge of the lost golem of Zenith is grasped around your feet." said a voice that spoke ever so faintly in the back of Naruto's mind.

"Huh, what was that... eh, must have been nothing." thought Naruto to himself as he and Hinata sat on the bench outside their house to look up at the stars.  
 **  
-To be continued next time with Chapter 009...-**


	9. A Liability

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 009: A Liability**

Aoba and Raido had arrived at the Interrogation Department around one in the morning, with Sheppard in tow.

"So this is the guy you were able to confiscate, good work, we will be able to have this finished in no time." said Ibiki as Aoba and Raido sat Sheppard in a jail cell to await his interrogation.

"You imbeciles really believe you have me cornered, let me tell you, there will be nothing but misery if you try to delve too deeply into my psyche." said Sheppard as he lied down on the floor.

"We will see about that, everyone is quick to talk once Ibiki has his way." said Aoba.

"I am going to help in the construction of the fallen gates, I am sure you and Ibiki will handle this." said Raido as he left the Interrogation Department.

"This man is a liability in our quest to find out who or what was behind this attack on our village." said Aoba to Ibiki.

"I know, like I said, we will have this done before sunrise." said Ibiki as he opened the cell that Sheppard was in and guided him to a table surrounded by a glass wall.

"I will do the talking, Aoba will use his Mind Reading Jutsu to figure out whatever you are not willing to tell us." said Ibiki as he and Aoba were ready to start.

"Just be careful, you may learn more than you are willing to know." said Sheppard with a grin as Aoba placed his hand onto the bound man's forehead.

"Okay, concentrate, let's find out how this whole ordeal began." said Aoba as he began to enter Sheppard's mind.

Sasuke and Jugo were still on their way to the Land of Sound.

"We should be their in about half an hour, from their, it will take another twenty minutes to reach the hideout." said Jugo.

"I know, then once we arrive, I will ask him not only about what transpired yesterday, but also about something else that has been bothering me." said Sasuke as he could not quell a feeling of unease.

Aoba was continuing his efforts to purge into Sheppard's mind, he was able to come across a memory of Sheppard, standing alone in what looked like a basement, with dimly lit lights and tons of doors that resembled a mental institution.

"What kind of place is this?" asked Aoba to himself as he continued to observe Sheppard's memories.

"Sheppard, will you come with me, it is time to discuss your involvement with the plan." said a man in a doctor's suit and a surgical mask.

"Yes, I am ready and willing, though I must admit, I am a little nervous about meeting him in person." said Sheppard as he followed the man in the doctor's suit up a flight of stairs. Screams from behind the doors of the many rooms that filled the place could be heard as well.

"Good lord, what kind of place is this, what had transpired here?" asked Aoba.

"We have arrived at the hallway that leads to his quarters, are you sure you are ready, this will be painful." said the doctor as he had Sheppard walk down the dark hallway alone.

"Being operated on, in order to implant five thousand paper bombs into myself sounds a little extreme, but then again, this is what I agreed too." said Sheppard as he opened the large brass door that lead to what looked like a large room with many books filling the shelves, and only two candles lighting up the area.

"So, are you ready?" asked a man with long, blue spiky hair as he had Sheppard sit down into a chair with many surgical tools beside it.

"Of course, if all else fails, being a suicide bomb will definable make my loss worth it to the city that saved me as a war orphan." said Sheppard with a fanatical laugh.

"Yes, Lazarus is the city where does who are lost can have a home, for those with hearts filled with despair to be put at ease, and for those with dreams to have them come to fruition." said the light-green skinned man as he prepared to perform the surgery on Sheppard.

"So, this guy had five thousand paper bombs implanted into himself in the event of a fail-safe. these guys seem to be extremists at the very least." said Aoba as he drifted further into Sheppard's thoughts.

"It has been eight hours since the surgery, how do you fill Sheppard?" asked the blue haired man as he and Sheppard were sitting in the large room with many books and the dim-litted candles.

"I feel good, now you said that this operation to send an invitation to the golden hero will begin in two months?" asked Sheppard to the man.

"Yes, until then return to Camp Abraham, and wait to receive orders from Antoine Keido, is that clear?" asked the man to Sheppard.

"Yes Lord Dreatoen, I understand." said Sheppard as he left the area and seemed to feel at unease.

Aoba had seen enough and decided to release the jutsu, deciding to tell Ibiki on what he had discovered.

"It seems that the people that this man worked for had transplanted five thousand explosive paper bombs into him, rather it be in the case of the failure of this mission, or for something else." said Aoba.

"I see, so that is how these people treat you, as a living bomb, and yet you go along with it anyway, seems you are just a mindless follower with no will of his own." said Ibiki with a menacing look.

"I suppose the same could be said to you Konoha bastards in the way you falsely pursue the commands of your lack-luster Hokage." laughed Sheppard with glee.

"Everyone is entitled to believe how they want, but that has nothing to do with this, I am going to deactivate those bombs that were implanted inside of you." said Aoba as he placed his hand onto Sheppard's chest.

"They are already inactive, but feel free to do it anyway, I could care less, anything and everything that meant something to me has already been thrown down the shitter." said Sheppard in a mocking tone.

"Then you have nothing to loose by telling me who the mastermind behind this whole plan to invade our village was, am I right?" asked Ibiki.

"Sure, I would be glad to inform you, in fact, it would be an honor to tell you about the boss, he sure is a great man." said Sheppard with a laugh,

"Yeah, what kind of good man has someone implant bombs into one of his subordinates?" asked Aoba.

"I agreed to it goddammit, you saw it when you read my mind, did you not?" asked Sheppard in a furious tone.

"Yes, and now I have deactivated those bombs, so you are no longer a threat to any of us." said Aoba with a smile.

"Well, I guess all that is left now is to tell you about our boss, where do I start, well, I know of his name at least, that is about it." said Sheppard.

"And his name is?" asked Ibiki who was starting to get irritated.

"His name is Hir... ehghhh, ahhhhh!" screamed Sheppard as he began to let out a blood hurdling scream that filled the room.

"What is going on, Aoba, help me subdue him!" yelled Ibiki as he and Aoba attempted to restrain the man.

"No, please don't, don't let him kill me, don't let him kill me, don't let..." is all Sheppard could say as his head swelled up and exploded, leaving brain matter and blood all over the room.

"What in the hell happened, what is this?" asked Aoba with a frightened tone.

"The people Sheppard worked for must have done something else to him, perhaps what we just witnessed was a measure that their boss took to ensure that no information leaks got out." said Ibiki who was somewhat distraught with the situation.

"It seemed to me that Sheppard did not agree to this, I guess when it boils down to it, we are dealing with true scumbags." said Aoba who had some empathy for what had happened to Sheppard.

"I will tell Kakashi about this in the morning, for now, I will help you clean up this mess." said Aoba.

"I am glad it was just the two of us here, anyone else would have lost it after seeing this." said Ibiki.

One of Sheppard's eyes, which had been shot against the wall seemed to shed a tear as Aoba caught a glimpse of it, but decided to shake it off.

Lunesto, Antoine, and Jesei were on their way back to their destination. They had passed around the western border of the Land of Stone, and were now in the country of Leviticus, where their home was located.

"Almost their, I bet by now that Dreatoen triggered the trap that was secretly put into Sheppard's head, hehehehe." laughed Jesei.

"Was that not a little extreme though, how could he do that to one of our own." said Antoine with disgust.

"Hey, he was just a war orphan of Amegakure, no loss, everyone from that village is a fucking piece of shit anyway." said Lunesto who had seemed to gain great satisfaction knowing that a person from that village had died.

"I say we kill the five kages next, those ungrateful bastards will deserve to be tortured in the worst possible way for lying to their villages, after all of this time." said Jesei with a sadistic look.

"We will leave it to the Apathetic Judge to decide what we do with them, besides, we are only ten miles from Lazarus now, and it is four in the morning, don't want to keep the other Knights of Dawn waiting." said Lunesto as the three men quickly ran towards the location of their destination.

Naruto had fallen asleep beside Hinata in their bed, with the window opened, and the nice warm summer time air flowing in. A few drops of sweat seemed to roll down Naruto's forehead as a strange vision appeared in his dreams.

It was like something out of a nightmare, as Naruto in his dream questioned the occurrence.

"What is going on here?" thought Naruto to himself as he could not wake up.

A large, skinless hand appeared from the shadows that surrounded Naruto in what appeared to be an underground mental institution, the veins pulsating on the large hand that was twice as large as Naruto.

"Ewww, what the hell, is this some kind of gross dream?" asked Naruto to himself as he was disturbed by the sight.

"Hinata will DIE first, Hinata will DIE first, she will die DIE DIE DIE!" yelled a demonic voice, which appeared to have a subtle tone of sadness to it, over and over again as the skinless hand grabbed Naruto and began to squeeze him harshly.

"No, it is just a dream, that is all!" yelled Naruto as he woke up beside Hinata, who had also awakened after witnessing her husband screaming himself out of rest.

"Naruto, are you okay, you were screaming, and saying that this is only a dream?' asked Hinata with a sincere look on her face.

"No, it was nothing, trust me, I guess the recent excitement just got to me, let's just go back to bed." said Naruto as he was still very tired from the day prior.

"Okay dear, but just let me know if you need anything, I will always be here for you." said Hinata as a tear rolled down her face, as she could not stand to see Naruto troubled, even if only in the slightest way.

"I will never let nothing happen to you, my angle." thought Naruto to himself as he started to heavily cry silently to himself with the thought of Hinata in his mind.

"Naruto, please don't cry, I promise that everything will be alright." said Hinata as she gave Naruto a hug and comforted him the rest of the night.

"Thank you." said Naruto as he had seemed to have lost a great deal of energy from the nightmare.

Sasuke and Jugo had entered a cavern deep in the Land of Sound, near an old farm that had long since been abandoned.

"He should be here, I detected his presence with my Sharingan and Rinnegan, I know it." said Sasuke as he opened a door leading to an area with many glass bottles and research equipment.

"Well call me a fish out of water, look who it is." said a voice as a man with blue-white hair emerged from one of the other doors in the room.

"Suigetsu, is he here, or did he leave, their is something I need to ask him." said Sasuke sternly.

"Umm, yeah, I thinks so, but more to the point, how have you been, it has seemed like forever since I last saw you." said Suigetsu with glee.

"Forget that, I need to speak with him now." said Sasuke with haste.

"Hehehehe, no need to be so rude Sasuke, I am here, just don't tell me you want to meet with the dead Kages again, kukukuku." laughed a sinister voice as a pale man with purple marking emerged from behind Sasuke and Jugo.

"Oh Lord Orochimaru, their you are." said Suigetsu with shock.

"No smartass, but their is something else I would like to ask, who is the leader of the men that attacked our village and seem to want a meeting with Naruto Uzumaki?" asked Sasuke as he looked at Orochimaru with his Sharingan and Rinnegan active.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 010...-**


	10. The Scientist's Prediction

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 010: The Scientists' Prediction**

Orochimaru had heard of the request that Sasuke made in regards to the men that were in pursuit of Naruto, and who had claimed a false assault on the village.

"It seems that their are still some shinobi out their that still wish to follow in the Konoha Crush plan that I started after all." said Orochimaru as he walked in front of Sasuke and put a scroll onto a nearby table in his hideout.

"I would not be so sure of that, the person that I fought against was speaking in a way that lead to more of a plan to lure out Naruto." said Sasuke as he was on guard against anything that Orochimaru tried to do.

"Don't worry so much Sasuke, I am not after your body anymore, ever since I merged with that White Zetsu, I have been able to achieve new leaps and bounds in my jutsu and knowledge." said Orochimaru with a smirk.

"Good for you, but I could care less, I want to know if you have heard of three men named Jesei Leikough, Antoine, and Lunesto." said Sasuke with a stern tone.

"Who the hell are they, some kind of crew of rogue ninja or something?" asked Suigetsu with confusion.

"I don't know, but they, along with several shinobi from a distant land were the ones that invaded the village, and since Orochimaru has been through much of the world, I am sure he knows something." said Sasuke.

"Well, well, I have heard of Jesei and Antoine, would you like to know more?' asked Orochimaru as he put his hand on the scroll that he sat on the table and opened it.

"Don't play clueless with me you hear, just spit it out, I got better things to do after all." said Sasuke.

"Is it about Kaguya and that White Zetsu Army?" asked Orochimaru.

"That was the original purpose of my journey, but this new development is not related to that, hence the reason I am here." said Sasuke.

"Well, Jesei Leikough was once a shinobi that belonged to the leaf, he was in the same age group as Hiruzen and Danzo, I did not know him very well though." said Orochimaru.

"Heh, what about Antoine then?" asked Sasuke.

"He hails from a former land called the Land of Riptides, a seaside community that had ports which shipped goods to the other five great nations, again, that is all I know of him." said Orochimaru.

"No information on this Lunesto then?" asked Sasuke.

"Afraid not, but I could tell you something a bit more of value." said Orochimaru with a serious look in his snake eyes.

"What would that be?" continued on Sasuke.

"Did any of them happen to mention the name, the Apathetic Judge?" asked Orochimaru.

"I am not sure, but from the way those three were acting, it would not surprise me if that was the moniker their boss goes by." said Sasuke.

"The Apathetic Judge, what the hell kind of name is that?" asked Suigetsu who was also curious.

"I know of him, that is certain, and if I am right, then Naruto could be in incredible danger, no, not just him, but every one of us." said Orochimaru with a drop of sweat rolling down his left cheek.

"Why have none of us heard of this name before, surely these guys had to have some kind of relationship with the Akatsuki to have all of this information that they do." said Sasuke with a concerned expression.

"No, they were never associated with the Akatsuki, but I believe that they call themselves the Knights of Dawn, their are eight of them in particular, but of course, I only know the exact names of the three you gave me." said Orochimaru as he picked up the scroll off of the table and swallowed it.

"What is that scroll, are you getting ready to do something?" asked Jugo as he noticed something was amiss.

"The only one who I have concrete information on is this Apathetic Judge himself, and you will be thinking me once I give this information to you." said Orochimaru as he looked Sasuke in the eyes.

"Them tell me, I need to give this information to Naruto before the sun rises." said Sasuke thinking of his rival.

"No, you must not tell anyone, after all, I thought that this Apathetic Judge was dead for over thirty years, but it seems that I was wrong." said Orochimaru.

"You thought he was dead for thirty years, what spurs you into thinking that he is alive now?" asked Suigetsu who decided to question things for himself.

"I can sense his chakra, I will never forget it, the first time I knew of it, I was only five years old." proclaimed Orochimaru.

"Enough of this, how do you know of this man, when no one else does?" asked Sasuke who was getting irritated.

"Well, you could say that we have, or at least had a close relationship." said Orochimaru.

"Remember when you asked me the real reason that I invaded the leaf and killed Sarutobi-sensei, do you remember the answer that I gave you?" asked Orochimaru.

"I sure do love that I was informed of this, oh yeah, I was not!" said Suigetsu who was feeling left out.

"It was none of your business, besides we had more important matters at the time." said Sasuke who thought back to when Orochimaru resurrected the Hokages.

"You said you underwent the Konoha Crush to avenge your parents, but that was about it, what are you hinting at." said Sasuke as his Rinnegan was focused on the Sannin.

"Well, I also did it for this Apathetic Judge too, because he was my..." said Orochimaru as he cut his words short.

"He was your what, I am really about this close to killing you if you do not spill this information!" said Sasuke in an angered tone.

"Jugo, Suigetsu, you two stand outside of the hideout, I wish to tell Sasuke this alone." said Orochimaru.

"Yes sir." declared Jugo as he headed to the outside of the hideout.

"Hey, I have every right to know as well, what the hell?' asked Suigetsu who was angry that he would be left in the dark again.

"Suigetsu, you will find out soon enough, just listen to me and leave." said Orochimaru.

"Fine, if you say so." said Suigetsu as he followed Jugo to outside of the hideout.

"Man, Karin gets to go on a spying mission for us, and I get stuck helping Orochimaru with studying these scrolls, and now he will not tell me anything." thought Suigetsu to himself as he joined Jugo outside of the door.

"Well, we are alone, talk, tell me everything you know, and also tell me about the reasons for everything you have done since you were a child." said Sasuke in a threatening manner.

"Okay, reincarnation of Indra, if anyone deserves to know this it is you and Naruto." said Orochimaru.

The sun had risen as it was now six o'clock in the morning the following day of the invasion. Lunesto, Jesei, and Antoine had arrived at the entrance gate of the city of Lazarus, their home village. It was a large town with many buildings resembling delicate buildings made of marble and many vines and gardens adorning the area. Their was a large lake in the middle of the city, with a dragon head made of marble pouring out water that flowed directly into the lake.

A large castle stood at the top of the city, attached to a mountain range that was at the far north end of the area. The castle had many statues of sea-serpent like creatures decorating it.

"Home at last, I was getting restless without taking my daily bath, I am starting to smell like you Jesei." said Lunesto in a joking manner.

"I swear, one of these days I will make you pay for your shrewd comments you worthless delinquent." said Jesei who was annoyed by Lunesto's antics.

"We need to report to the Castle of Leviticus at once, the other five Knights are their awaiting a follow up report regarding our mission." said Antoine as the three entered the southern gate of the city.

Their were many civilians who lived in Lazarus, most of them being people whose villages were destroyed over the years, they all let out a large cheer when they saw Antoine, Jesei, and Lunesto walk through the main street.

"Three of the sacred knights have returned, God has been good to us today, I bet they laid waste to the infidels who opposed us." said one of the citizens with a happy expression.

"We have returned my wonderful comrades, and do not worry, we will give an update on the events that have transpired once our meeting in the Castle of Leviticus is finished." said Antoine to the civilians that were around them.

"Okay sir, we will be anxious to hear of it, I am sure Lord Dreatoen will fill us all in." said one of the village elders with a pleased tone.

"Let's hurry, I do not want to be late again." said Jesei as the three men raced towards the large castle in the southern end of town with a since of desperation.

Naruto had awaken at seven in the morning as he usually did and notified Hinata that he was going to meet Kakashi at his office.

"Are you okay, you seemed to be in a lot of pain last night." said Hinata with a concerned tone in her voice.

"Relax, I am alright, you just rest for now, tomorrow is the day I open this scroll to see what those bastards were wanting to invite me too." said Naruto as he was determined to figure out the meaning behind this whole ordeal.

"Just be careful, and come back home as soon as you finish your business with Lord Hokage." said Hinata as he got out of bed and started to take a shower.

"I will, I promise." said Naruto to his wife as he left his house and headed straight to Kakashi's office.

On his way their, he ran into Ino, Chouji, and Shikamaru who were standing at the crosswalk that led to the mansion.

"Are you doing good today, Naruto?" asked Chouji.

"Yes, but I need to speak with Kakashi on the events from yesterday, and about this scroll too." said Naruto.

"I will come with you, Captain Yamato will also be their." said Shikamaru.

"Okay, that sounds good." said Naruto.

"Bye, be sure to stop by the flower shop sometime, Sai always gets lonely, maybe you two can do something together soon." said Ino as she and Chouji waved off Naruto as he and Shikamaru ran towards the Hokage's mansion.

"Did you hear about what happened at the Interrogation Department last night?" asked Shikamaru to Naruto as the two arrived at the entrance of the mansion.

"No, did something go down?" asked Naruto.

"That Sheppard guy's head exploded while Aoba was trying to get information out of him, it seems that these bastards that we are dealing with our the lowest of the low, to do that to one of their own." said Shikamaru in disgust.

"No way, well, I am sure to notify Kakashi of this as well, let's go." said Naruto who had thought of the dream that he had last night.

Sasuke and Orochimaru were discussing the recent turns of events as Jugo and Suigetsu were still anxiously awaiting outside.

"Man, what the hell could they be talking about in there anyway?" asked Suigetsu as he put his ear up to the door.

"Lord Orochimaru told us it was not of our concern for the time being, just be patient Suigetsu." said Jugo.

"I am back, did I miss anything." yelled a woman with spiky red hair on one end, and straight hair on the other side.

"Hey, Karin you are back, did you find anything while you were out spying?" asked Suigetsu.

"Not really, but I did sense Sasuke arrive here, did he want too see me, hehehe." said Karin as he began to fantasize about Sasuke again.

"No, but he is discussing something of great importance with Orochimaru right now, and we were told to wait out here until they have finished." said Jugo.

"Damn, that means I will have to wait even longer to see my precious Sasuke." said Karin with despair.

"It is always that bullshit with Sasuke that you blabber about, geez." thought Suigetsu to himself.

Orochimaru continued on with his explanation to Sasuke.

"You want to know in detail about the reasoning behind the things that I did, very well, and what better place to start than to tell you about my older brother." said Orochimaru with a saddened look in his eyes.

"Older brother, what did you just say?" asked Sasuke as his eyes widened in disbelief.

"Yes, and their is a reason that I never mentioned him, after all, he is the one who made my childhood a living hell, and he is also the one who taught me about all of the forbidden jutsu that I have learned as well." said Orochimaru.

"Really, well it seems that we had more parallels than I thought." said Sasuke with a confused look.

"I am going to stop you right their, your older brother Itachi was like an angel, but, my older brother on the other hand, was like something out of a nightmare, even more dark than me." said Orochimaru as he was ready to tell Sasuke the secrets behind all of his actions up to this point.

"Well then, go on, tell me everything." said Sasuke.

"I was only three years old the first time I saw my brother, he was around twenty three at the time, their was a twenty year age gap between us, anyway he was never around, as he was always away since the First Shinobi World War was going on around that time." said Orochimaru.

"...And what was your first impressions of him?" asked Sasuke.

"True fear and despair." said Orochimaru as he began to remember the first encounter with his brother.

"His name was Hirudeguarn, Hirudeguarn Naga." said Orochimaru as his hand began to sweat a little.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 011...-**


	11. Orochimaru's Decree

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 011: Orochimaru's Decree**

Orochimaru had begun to tell his story pertaining to Sasuke's wishes.

"He was that bad, eh?" asked Sasuke. "You know, you were not exactly a saint yourself." said Sasuke as he was still not buying what Orochimaru was saying.

"Believe what you want, but this Hirudeguarn was indeed my older brother, and he was an unique fellow to say the least, especially when it comes to how he dealt with things." said Orochimaru as he was getting irritated slightly by Sasuke's questioning.

"Is this Hirudeguarn one of the Knights of Dawn?" asked Sasuke as he decided to jump to conclusions.

"No, he is not, but he could be related to this incident in one way or another." said Orochimaru as he was placing a lot of different scrolls into a snake that he summoned prior to Sasuke's arrival.

"I know you grew up as the top student of the Third Hokage, that you took interest in becoming like the Sage of the Six Paths, that you were carrying out the Konoha Crush for your dead parents, but what does this Hirudeguarn fit into all of this?" asked Sasuke who was not willing to listen to one of Orochimaru's detailed accounts of his life.

"Hmph, you sure are in a hurry, it is like I said, their will be no way to fully tell you what you want to know until I confirm it myself." said Orochimaru as he walked passed Sasuke.

"You know, my parents loved my dearly too, my thoughts were never aimed at murder or experimentation during those times." said Orochimaru as he glanced over at Sasuke.

"Everyone changes when they grow up, do you expect me to believe that you would be any different?" said Sasuke.

"Well, you have changed many times too, be it your vengeance against Itachi, vengeance against Konoha, or that revolution, it seems that you went through many more changes that anyone else, and now you are trying to find something that may or may not be there." said Orochimaru as he seemed visually agitated.

"What has came over you now, deciding to lash out at me for now reason?" asked Sasuke who was confused.

"I have had enough of this little questionnaire, go tell Naruto that the ones who are wishing too see him live around three hundred miles northwest of the Land of Stone, in an area that is well outside of the five great shinobi nations." said Orochimaru as he sat down on one of his throne-like chairs.

"So you know where they are, you could have told me that earlier, it is past sunrise, Naruto could already be out exhausting pointless energy looking for them, that is how he is." said Sasuke as he began to leave.

"Sasuke, I suggest you do not handle this the same way you deal with every other problem, brashly, hehehehe, you rush this predicament, and you might end up getting both of the Sage's Son's reincarnations killed." laughed Orochimaru as he closed his eyes and began to think of all of his rapidly racing thoughts on what move he should make next.

"Even with the presented information, I will never fully understand you, but at least I have a location now." said Sasuke as he was about to leave.

"No, thank you for letting me in on the know, Sasuke, thank you indeed." said Orochimaru as he walked back into one of his rooms which contained a map and other supplies.

"I am leaving, you can do whatever you like, just stay out of myself and Naruto's way." said Sasuke as he used his Amenotejikara to quickly teleport several meters out of the underground hideout.

All of a sudden, Karin came running through the door with Suigetsu and Jugo in tow.

"Lord Orochimaru, I know Sasuke was in here, where did he go?" asked Karin with a saddened tone.

"He probably left without telling us again, you know how he is, he does not really care about us." said Suigetsu who felt the same way most of the time about Karin.

"Sasuke had something important to do, and do not concern yourself with where he could have gone, try to contribute to the situation in your own way." said Jugo who had heard one too many of Suigetsu's woes about Sasuke.

"You got me, fine, I will do something." said Suigetsu as he planned on tracking down Sasuke.

"Suigetsu, Karin, Jugo, their is no reason to worry about what Sasuke is going to do, we are going on our own mission, do you hear me!" exclaimed Orochimaru as he emerged from one of his rooms with several supplies stored in his summoned snakes.

"What kind of mission could this possibly be, kidnap more defenseless civilians, hehehe." laughed Suigetsu sarcastically.

"No, you ingrate, we are going to see the boss of these so-called Knights of Dawn, and I just happen to possess the means to get there within a weeks time." said Orochimaru with a look of excitement on his face.

"Now we are talking, maybe I can find someone who will actually appreciate me on this journey." said Karin as she knew that Sasuke had already professed his love to Sakura.

"Well, Suigetsu, it looks like you got your wish, we will finally be able to undertake in something very special, the day Orochimaru's experiments became his team-mates." said Jugo.

"That is one way too look at it but as I said before, you are no longer Hebi anyway." said Orochimaru as he and Team Taka walked out of the hideout.

"Sasuke, I know what you are thinking, that you and Naruto will be able to forcefully end this, but heed to what I told you earlier, be sure to listen to my decree." thought Orochimaru thinking of Sasuke's nature.

Naruto and Shikamaru had arrived in Kakashi's office where Yamato was also in attendance.

"Oh Naruto, you are here after all, it has been eons since I saw you." said Yamato with a tone of joy.

"Yes, not since the end of the Fourth World War did we last meet, but we have some urgent news from an occurrence that took place last night." said Naruto as he remembered what Shikamaru told him.

"I am aware, Sheppard was killed by some kind of jutsu that activated from within his head, most likely a result of those three men that got away." said Kakashi as he continued to look over many papers that were pertaining to funds related to repairing the village.

"You said tomorrow I can open this scroll right?" asked Naruto as he wished to honor what his former sensei told him.

"Yes, I know that you are eager to see what those three men want from you, but just hold out 'till tomorrow morning, I will have a team best suited for you, once you decide what to do after discovering the contents of that scroll." said Kakashi as he seemed half awake.

"You are more stressed than any of us." said Shikamaru with a sly smile.

"Well, I am the Sixth Hokage, their must not be a single document that escapes my grasp without my signature on it." said Kakashi as he instructed Naruto to hold tight until the next day.

"Naruto, if you help me out, we can have those walls that were destroyed yesterday fixed in under half an hour." said Yamato referring to his Wood Release and Naruto's Yang Power.

"Gotcha' Yamato-taicho, I will be right behind you, I will see you soon Shikamaru, and Kakashi." said Naruto as deep down, he had a feeling of uncertain thoughts relating to the scroll that he had tucked away in his pocket.

"It would be best to come here around eight in the morning tomorrow, you can open the scroll and read it in my office, just to be on the safe side, once you discover what those soldiers want from you, we can create a team that best suit your needs and act accordingly." said Kakashi to Naruto as he and Yamato headed out to fix the Eastern and Western walls.

"I am sure glad that we have you as Hokage, thank you for all that you have done so far." said Shikamaru as he bowed to Kakashi and left behind Naruto and Yamato.

Sakura was busy looking over a list of medical practices that she was going to teach to her students today, while she was fixing up her room.

"No, this is not right at all dammit, Shannaroo!" yelled Sakura as he threw all of her documents onto the floor.

"These medical procedures are outdated, I cannot be caught teaching my students techniques this pointless." said Sakura as she paced herself and quickly had her room looking very clean.

"Heh, everything looks as good as new, now it is time that I train myself for a while before I go to the academy." said Sakura as she was the instructor for the Medic-Ninja in training at Konoha Academy.

"If I can master the Ninja Art Creation Rebirth - Strength of A Hundred Technique, I will be able to aim even higher." said Sakura to herself as she was determined to compliment Naruto and Sasuke's abilities as a member of Team Seven.

"Of course, I must also teach my own students the Mystical Palm Technique within the next three months, I hope they can do it in time for the Allied Chunin Exams." said Sakura as she walked outside of her house only to notice Naruto and Yamato head towards the Western wall a few blocks away from her house.

"Naruto and Yamato, what are they up to, hmmm, I better just worry about my own training for now." said Sakura as she headed towards the Old Training Grounds to work on her jutsu undisturbed.

"Sakura, you are taking this time of peace seriously too." thought Naruto to himself as he could sense Sakura as he and Yamato arrived at the destroyed Western Wall where Raido and other shinobi had already started re-constructing it.

"Hey, me and Naruto are here now, no need to strain yourselves too much." said Yamato as he and Naruto began to combine the Yang and Wood Release to quickly replace the destroyed gate with a new one that looked identical.

"Well damn, I guess we should be thankful for you guys." said Raido in disbelief.

"Thanks to Naruto's Yang Release Power in the palm of his hand when he touches my back, I do not get tired nearly as much when I perform chakra taxing jutsu." said Yamato as he and Naruto prepared to fix the Eastern Wall as well.

Jesei, Antoine, and Lunesto had all arrived at the door of the Castle of Leviticus where a large pair of Golden Doors with brass and Silver around them awaited the three men.

"You don't think they locked us out do you?" asked Lunesto with a dumb-founded look on his face.

"It is probably a form of punishment for being late." said Jesei.

"The door is not locked, for goodness sakes, just come on in." said Antoine as he turned the large lever on the castle doors to open them.

The three men entered the main room of the castle with several elevators and stairs leading up and down the many floors of the gothic-looking castle.

"I heard that this meeting would be on the third floor." said Jesei as he decided to take the stairs to the meeting.

"I am just going to take the elevator, so I can have time to be alone before this lame-ass meeting takes place." sighed Lunesto.

"Yeah, I hear that, I am looking forward to a long nap on the beach after this is over." said Antoine as he thought about have his favorite tropical sake.

"Ya' are late-o, my dumbass bitches, but welcome aboard anyway!" said a dark-skinned man wearing a fedora and a suit, with sunglasses.

"Andarius Reiko, goddamn, can I just go to these meetings without being disturbed all of the fucking time?" said Jesei with a comically irritated jester as he slowly arrived at the room on the left end of the hallway on the third floor of the castle.

"Yo, Lunesto and Antoine, you two made it as well, c'mon now, we do not want this shit to go on for too long, I hate these meetings as much as you three." said Andarius as Lunesto and Antoine followed him to the room where the meeting was to take place.

"I hope that the room is cleaned, last time I looked on this floor, everything was dirty, I am sure the boss would be upset if he knew that his own Knights could not properly keep the place nice and tidy." said Lunesto jokingly to Andarius.

"Shit, well at least I know what I have to do after the meeting is over." said Andarius.

"I take it everyone is here?" asked the light-green skinned man with the long, blue, spiky hair.

"Yes, Dreatoen, we are here." said Jesei with a grumpy tone.

"Antoine Keido here as well, and damn this coffee tastes like complete shit!" said Antoine as his thoughts on tropical sake began to intensify.

"Lunesto Amire here, and things are still in shambles around the castle, does anyone not know how to keep this place looking good, I mean really." said Lunesto with a pout.

"Aww' c'mon damn it, I will clean this shit fo' you soon, I swear!" said Andarius speaking to Lunesto. "Oh, and umm, Andarius Reiko here as well. hehehe." said Andarius as the other seven men looked at him with a look of disbelief.

"Ahem, Tetsuga Marshlo present, and no spies to report of around the city." said a man with golden brown spiky hair and a suit.

"Lehourihm Nante here, my meditation did not reveal any disturbances around the vicinity." said a large man with a suit, dark skin, and a hair-style resembling orange and red flames.

"Zaire here, though I would rather fuckin' be elsewhere." said a tall young man with medium-length brown hair, blue eyes, and a five o'clock shadow.

"Dreatoen Morea here, and I will be the mediator of this meeting, as soon as I am finished with my introduction, we will go over what the boss expects from us." said Dreatoen.

"Naruto Uzumaki, that is what you mean." said Jesei as he did not like to beat around the bushes.

"Yes, that is correct, now let's begin this meeting." said Dreatoen with an emotionless look on his face.

"We eight shinobi are the Knights of Dawn, the sacred army of Lazarus, and the holy missionaries of his majesty, The Apathetic Judge, his kingdom come, his will be done, only once when depression ends, I now declare that the meeting begins!" yelled Dreatoen with a look of glee in the red pupils and dark yellow sclerae of the dragon-like man.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 012...-**


	12. Jesei's Invitation

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 012: Jesei's Invitation**

The Knights of Dawn have begun their meeting pertaining to the events of delivering the scroll, which contained an invitation, to Naruto Uzumaki.

"I believe that things were carried out without too much of a problem?" asked Zaire Senju with a restless tone.

"Of course, nothing went too out of line, except that Sasuke Uchiha confronted me during the scuffle, I was lucky to escape alive to be honest." said Jesei as he thought back to the encounter.

"Sasuke Uchiha, last reincarnation of Indra Otsutsuki, yes, the one with the Yin Six Paths Senjutsu power." said Dreatoen without much surprise.

"Heh, he sounds tough indeed." said Lehourihm with a monotone voice.

"Naruto was amazing too, he glowed like an angel, like something sent to us from heaven by god himself." said Lunesto with a joyful expression.

"The results of Ashura Otsutsuki's chakra flowing through him, that is all, he is nothing compared to the Apathetic Judge after all." said Dreatoen with a tone of confidence.

"You are being misguided, that power is something he earned himself." said Antione.

"In any case, I have picked up a disturbance that seems to appear at the northwest end of our city every now and then, though I have yet to make anything of it." said Testuga with a look of duty.

"Keep surveying that area, Tetsuga, we do not want spies from those filthy shinobi villages tampering with our gracious city of Lazarus." said Dreatoen.

"I will do my best, sir." said Tetsuga as he looked over his scroll that he pulled out of his pocket.

"It is not certain yet of Naruto has taken a look at the contents of our invitation or not yet, but hopefully, the Hokage does not confiscate the damn thing." said Jesei with worry.

"I would not worry, Naruto will read it, it's just the kind of person he is." said Dreatoen with reassurance.

"Is that all, these meetings are always a damn boredom fest, I mean really fools!" said Andarius Reiko with an expressive gesture.

"We will wait to be briefed on our next escapade once the boss decides to leave his quarters." said Dreatoen as he walked out of the room silently.

"I guess that is a yes, hopefully Naruto will come to the city, he will like it here." said Lunesto.

"I don't even think he should bother, couldn't we just go to him, schedule a second invasion?" asked an agitated Zaire.

"No, that would be pointless, just be patient Zaire, he will come, and when he does, the most glorified battle in history will take place." said Antoine with anticipation.

"Well, in any case, that concludes this meeting, everyone return to your own stations, we will wait for any further information from our boss, just like Dreatoen told us." said Lehourihm as he teleported out of the castle.

"Finally, time to hit the beach for a while, it should only take me a few hours to reach the Land of Riptides from here." said Antoine with joy.

"I will go see the Apathetic Judge myself, we will smoke a pipe and talk about the good old days, hehehe." laughed Jesei as he also left the room.

"Yes, and I will tend to the northwest location of the city to deal with whoever has the gall to trespass on our sacred land." said Tetsuga as he ran out of the room.

Naruto and Yamato had finished construction of both the eastern and western walls of Konoha as evening had arrived.

"Thanks for the help Naruto, I will be returning to the ANBU headquarters now, you take it easy." said Yamato.

"Umm, Yamato-taicho, did you hear about this scroll I have received?" asked Naruto.

"No, not in detail, but listen to Kakashi, wait until tomorrow at eight in the morning until you read it, and in his office like he instructed you." said Yamato with a serious tone.

"I will, time to go home, bye Yamato-taicho." said Naruto as he waved at the other shinobi that were helping with the walls.

"Be careful Naruto, see you soon." said Raido as Naruto ran back to Hinata.

Sakura had finished her training for the evening and was sitting beside the three logs where Team seven took their test years ago.

"Phew, that was intense, though I should be able to master a jutsu beyond the Strength of A Hundred Technique soon." said an exhausted Sakura to herself.

"You have been out here for six hours, are you okay?" asked Ino as she found Sakura in the training grounds.

"Oh, Ino, what brings you here?" asked Sakura as she was happy to have some company.

"Some good flowers grow around here, Sai was too lazy to go out and look for them earlier, heheheh." laughed Ino.

"After what happened yesterday, I am glad that I decided to stay in shape should something like this occur." said Sakura.

"It is getting late now, don't overdo, here, I will walk with you until you get home." said Ino cheerfully.

"Thanks, that sounds good." said Sakura.

Naruto had arrived home and was greeted by Hinata, who was sitting on the bench outside of their house.

"There you are Naruto, I saw you helping Yamato build the walls back earlier today, I wanted to help, although it looked like you had it under control." said Hinata as Naruto sat beside her.

"I will be going to see Kakashi tomorrow at eight in the morning, it will be about that scroll from yesterday." said Naruto to Hinata.

"I will come with you, just in case it is a trap." said Hinata with concern.

"Okay, how about we go take a night stroll around the village, ya'know, to relieve some stress." said Naruto with a smile to Hinata.

"Oh, that sounds great, we can even stop by the new doll shop while we are out!" said Hinata as she and Naruto started to take a slow stroll around the village.

A few hours passed and it was now midnight as Naruto and Hinata returned from their walk and decided to go to bed.

"That was a good walk, sorry they did not have any of those dolls you liked." said Naruto as he started to fall asleep.

"That is alright, I am sure they will have some tomorrow." said Hinata as she also started to fall asleep.

Naruto had begun to dream of the same macabre events that he had the night prior, he found himself standing in a grassy plain, with a lake nearby and the crescent moon shining above.

"This dream feels more like genjutsu than anything else." thought Naruto to himself.

"Uzumaki, be sure to thoroughly read that scroll tomorrow, I will look forward to seeing you, I have been wanting to meet you for a long time." said a voice deep within Naruto's consciousness.

"Who is there, what the hell do you want, stay out of my head!" said Naruto as he tried to wake up.

"Relax, morning will be here tomorrow, and when the time comes, all things will be made clear, and any questions that may arise will be answered, the dawn of our Armageddon shall soon begin." said the voice as Naruto began to calm down and dream of Hinata and himself on the beach.

Morning finally came the next day, and Naruto had awakened from his sleep, to find Hinata already up.

"Did I oversleep again, no, the clock says six in the morning, I have two hours before I have to be at Kakashi's mansion." said Naruto to himself as the scroll from the three Knights of Dawn laid beside his bed.

"I know these dreams have some relation to this scroll, whoever those guys worked for must be using a jutsu to talk with me through my dreams." thought Naruto as he got up and dressed himself.

"Awake finally sleepy head, I am ready whenever you are, just be sure to comb your hair, hehehe." laughed Hinata as she hugged Naruto.

The next two hours seemed to pass quickly as Naruto and Hinata were headed towards the Hokage's mansion.

"I hope we are not late." said Naruto.

"Don't worry, we will be on time, do you have that scroll?" asked Hinata.

"Yes, I could not keep it out of my mind in the course of my dreams last night." said Naruto with a concerned tone.

Kakashi and Yamato were awaiting Naruto's arrival as eight o' clock ticked around.

"He should be here any time, in the event of a trap, make sure Tsunade knows to keep anyone away from the mansion." said Kakashi thinking of what could be in the scroll.

"Already ahead of you, she carried out that request half an hour ago." said Yamato.

"I can hear footsteps approaching the door, it has to be Naruto." said Kakashi.

"Hokage-sama, we are here." said Hinata as she and Naruto had entered the room.

"Okay then, Hinata, stand behind Yamato, Naruto, get ready to open that scroll." said Kakashi with a cautious tone.

"I will enter Sage Mode just in case a trap is sprung, that way I can react in time." said Naruto as his eyes entered the pigment that marked a true sage.

Without any second thought, Naruto attempted to open the scroll, only to find out that it would not unfold, no matter how much force he applied.

"Eh, what the hell, it will not open, huh, seems to be some kind of seal on the cover that I did not see before." said Naruto with confusion.

"I saw it, when you tried to open the scroll, even though it did not open the way you wanted, that new sign appeared on it, what does it say?" asked Kakashi.

"Hmmm, it says, Verify that you are the beautiful ...Naru..to...Uzu..makii... what the hell, Dattebayo?" asked Naruto with a comical look on his face.

"Well, you are handsome, hehehe." laughed Hinata.

"I guess these people really are trying to appeal to you, just open it anyway." said Yamato.

"Okay, I will put a drop of my blood on this sign, that should be enough." said Naruto as he lightly bit his left thumb and placed some of his blood on the scroll, finally causing it to open.

"Oh boy, everyone prepare for what may be to come." said Kakashi with a tone of caution.

Everyone in the room waited for a minute, but nothing seemed to happen as Naruto opened the scroll the find a message inside.

"It is just directions, directions and nothing more, what the hell?" asked Naruto with confusion.

"It could be directions to their base of operations, remember when one of those three men said that their boss wants to meet you, this could be the directions to get their." said Kakashi.

"Well, wherever this is, it looks to be near the Land of Stone, somewhere from one hundred to three hundred miles away, it looks like a long trip." said Naruto.

"I see, you could easily get their in a few hours if you flew their, but just travel normally, once we assemble a team of shinobi to accompany you, of course." said Kakashi.

"When do you suggest that I leave?" asked Naruto.

"It would probably be better if you didn't." said Yamato.

"If that were to happen, those soldiers would probably just invade us again, besides, this would be a chance for us to figure out what is going on with this new threat." said Kakashi with a serious tone.

"You should notify the other Kage as well, let them know of the location of this place." said Hinata.

"No, I don't think that would be a good idea, but we can at least tell them the rest of this information though." said Kakashi.

"In any case, me and Hinata will wait for you to find a suitable team to accompany me, but be sure that it is only people who are willing to come, do not force anyone too." said Naruto as he started to think about his dreams for the past two nights.

"Nah, they don't need to know about my dreams, it would not help any." thought Naruto to himself.

"Then it is settled, Naruto, you and Hinata return home for now, I will contact you later after I find four other shinobi to join you on this mission, and hold on to that scroll too, and if you would like, go over the scroll a few more times to see if you can find any things you may have overlooked before." said Kakashi.

"Yes, will do." said Naruto as he and Hinata left the office.

"I wonder who you will place on Naruto's team?" asked Yamato.

"Sakura would be a good start." said Kakashi as he heard about Sakura's newest jutsu, from Tsunade, being developed.

"What, she mastered a technique beyond what the Fifth could not do?" asked Yamato with surprise.

"Yes, and she is probably one of the most skilled jonin in our village as well, she will play a crucial role in this mission, I will notify her later." said Kakashi thinking of how far his student has came.

Elsewhere, Sakura was out walking through the village, enjoying the sun rays of the morning, when she noticed Yamato approaching her.

"Oh, hi Yamato-sensei, how is it going?" asked Sakura politely.

"Kakashi wants you to join Naruto and three others on a mission to look for those bastards that invaded us three days ago." said Yamato.

"Shanaroo, say no more, I will get my supplies ready, just give me a few minutes." said Sakura with a look of joy as she had not been on a mission for a while.

"Man, she sure is hyped up today, she could even be the key to this mission for all we know." thought Yamato to himself as he returned to the kage's mansion to learn of the other three shinobi that Kakashi had on his mind.

Elsewhere, Andarius had left the Castle of Leviticus, when he received a telepathic message from Jesei.

"Andarius, Naruto has read the scroll, I set a jutsu that would notify me when the event were to occur, and now I am certain, I will notify the other six Knights of Dawn as well." said Jesei with joy.

"That is fine m'dude, but son a' bitch, let me enjoy my time in the hot tub." said Andarius as he jumped into the hot tub, only to slash all of the water out in the process.

"Well damn, guess I might as well visit Mei, the Mizukage, I could fight her for a while." said Andarius as he was upset about ruining his hot tub.

 **\- To be continued next time with Chapter 013...-**


	13. A City Outside of the Five Great Nations

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 013: A City Outside of the Five Great Nations?**

Yamato had gone to find three more shinobi to be part of Naruto's team when he embarks for the destination in the scroll that he read.

Sakura was one of the shinobi that was chosen to be on Naruto's team, Naruto himself decided to spend the rest of the day with Hinata.

Yamato had arrived at the location of the next shinobi he was going to recruit.

"There you are Sai, I was looking all over the village for you, I am glad I was able to find you before it took too long." said Yamato as he arrived outside of the Yamanaka Flower Shop.

"Hello Yamato, I was just helping Ino stock up the shelves with roses today, and I think I am allergic to them." said Sai with a sad tone.

"Well, it would seem that the scroll Naruto received from those invaders a few days ago was actually directions on how to get to some kind of new village." said Yamato with surprise.

"A new village, was it constructed recently?" asked Sai with confusion.

"I am not sure, but you have been chosen by Kakashi to be on Naruto's escort teams as he heads towards this strange threat." said Yamato.

"I see, let me get my tools and other supplies ready, I will report to Kakashi's office in around an hour." said Sai as he knew that Ino would understand his need to leave the flower shop.

"At least you have an understanding wife, heheheh." laughed Yamato as he moved on to recruit the next shinobi.

"Hmmm, next on this list is Shikamaru himself, I wonder if he is still on border duty right now, best go check." said Yamato as he headed towards the southern gate of the village.

"I can see him, he is standing on the top of the gate." said Yamato as he saw Shikamaru from his location.

"Sheesh, nothing to report as usual, I guess I should be glad, it is better to report nothing than to have to stare death right in the face." said Shikamaru as Yamato arrived on top of the gate with him.

"Wise words, but of course I expect no less from you Shikamaru, Kakashi has chosen you to be with Naruto, Sakura, Sai, and one more shinobi of his choosing, to go forward on a mission in response to the scroll that Naruto had received." said Yamato with a serious tone.

"Now, that sounds a little more refreshing, my time on border duty is about over anyway, and Temari is out visiting her own village right now, so this will work out very well." said Shikamaru.

"Good, I am glad to hear that, just be ready within the next two hours." said Yamato as he started to leave the top of the southern gate.

"Don't worry about that, I will have a strategy on how to swiftly finish this mission before it is even started." said Shikamaru as he ran towards his house to prepare for the mission.

Yamato thought to himself who would be next as he could not remember Kakashi mentioning a fourth name on his list, so Yamato decided to return to the Hokage's mansion in order to check up on this detail.

"Lord Hokage, I have told Sakura, Sai, and Shikamaru all about the mission and they have accepted their assignment, but, I have forgotten who the fourth shinobi I am supposed to ask is, could you tell me please?" asked Yamato as he was tired from running all around the village.

"Oh, that is right, a fourth shinobi, well, ummm, let's see, ahh, don't worry about it Yamato, this fourth shinobi is already with Naruto, I am sure they will also show up when the full five-man teams is assembled, you can go rest now." said Kakashi as he had his mask off and was finishing his tenth cup of coffee for the day.

"Huh, oh, well, okay, that sounds good, thank you Kakashi, or Lord Hokage, I will see you soon." said Yamato as he ran out of the office and had his mind set on going to the hot springs in order to unwind.

"Still though, who could this final shinobi be, Hinata perhaps?" asked Yamato to himself.

Naruto was eagerly awaiting to receive word on the team that was going to come with him in order to track down the location that he saw in the scroll.

"That sure was some good food they had at the new Bento shop." said Naruto with joy.

"I have to disagree, maybe I should just stick too Pork flavored dishes." said Hinata with a sick look on her face.

"Here, let's go home, you will feel better, and I will even give you a massage." said Naruto.

"Oh, that sounds good indeed, but you don't have too, I will be find." said Hinata as her and Naruto slowly walked through the streets in the bright afternoon, as three in the evening rolled around.

"Umm, when do you think this mission will start, because I will miss you while you are gone." said Hinata with a saddened tone.

"You are pregnant right now, I don't want to risk the baby's health, plus, I will be handling this alone, the others on my team will not actually be going into this new village with me, it could be a trap for all we know." said Naruto as the two arrived at their house.

"I see, but it has only been six days since we found out during our honeymoon, our you sure I don't need to come?" asked Hinata.

"Trust me, I got this, and when I return, which should only take me two days at most, we will have a good time out on the town to celebrate." said Naruto with joy as he and Hinata walked into their house, so that Naruto could prepare to undergo his path to follow the directions on the scroll.

In Lazarus, Andarius had finished his hot tub bath, as was sitting in the air conditioned room that was next to his hot tub, thinking of what his next move should be.

"Ohhh, check it out, should I really go fight Mei Terumi or not, I wonder, would the others get mad if I left?" thought Andarius as his clothes were drying outside of the air conditioned room.

"I can't just leave with this towel around me, I have to be properly dressed, but I can can just see Jesei bitching at me if I decide to do something without telling anyone else." said Andarius as he was eager to visit Kirigakure.

"My home village must be doing better, being a mist shinobi, I have always had an emotional connection to that village, especially now that it is under this new alliance." said Andarius as he decided to close his eyes and relax in the cooled room, waiting for his clothes to dry.

"I don't think it would be a good idea to leave Lazarus, without telling Dreatoen Morea first." said Lunesto, with a towel around his waist, as he also entered the air conditioned room.

"Ahh, come on man, dam' fool, I wanted to be alone for a while." said Andarius with a distressed tone in his voice.

"Chill my man, I understand you wanting to visit the hidden mist village, I am from the hidden sand myself, but I never want to return to that place again." said Lunesto as he was rubbing his legs, in order to shave them.

"It is not that I want to visit my home village as much as it is that I feel if we can at least take one of the five Kage hostage, it would ensure that the Shinobi Alliance would participate in their part during this invitation process." said Andarius as he thought of how he would kidnap the Mizukage.

"Hey, we will worry about that in the coming week, we do not want to be brash in our movements, let's mask ourselves for now, to remain in the shadows will be the advantage of the Knights of Dawns after all." said Lunesto with a grin as he also closed his eyes and enjoyed the cooled room with Andarius.

"Man, two naked dudes with nothing but towels covering their selves, and they are also mutually talking to each other, that is whack out m'dude." said Andarius who started to feel a little strange.

"Good god, you act like a kid, it is not like we are actually naked, although, I would not mind being full nude all of the time myself." said Lunesto who took pride in his feminine looks.

"That is it, I am outta' here, I will wait to head out to Kirigakure, but I will not listen to yo weird shit fool." said Andarius as he made haste and left the conditioned room.

"Heh, that always gets him, now I can relax undisturbed." said Lunesto to himself quietly.

Tetsuga Marshlo had arrived at the area of the border that he felt a disturbance at. The surrounding area around the vicinity of the location he was at was surrounded by many pine trees, it rained frequently, and had many caves and rivers flowing around it. Each of the four areas outside of the village of Lazarus all had a different climate and terrain, and each had a different name.

The terrain that Tetsuga was at was known as the Watered Caverns.

"The Watered Caverns, heh, so who ever is spying on our city must be hanging around these parts, but with the rainy climate around here, it will not be easy to spot the perpetrator." said Tetsuga as he was walking through the woods of the Watered Caverns as it rained down heavily.

"I cannot sense anyone, though I swear, for the most brief of times, I do detect some sort of chakra that I do not recognize." thought Tetsuga as he continued his search.

Oh, the chakra must be from on of these eight caves that occupy this one of four holy terrains around the city." said Tetsuga to himself.

"Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu." said Tetsuga as he created seven copies of himself in order to all explore the eight caverns in one go.

"Now, whatever inconsiderate bastard who is trespassing in our holy town will be executed with much joy." laughed Tetsuga to himself as he and his seven shadow clones entered the caverns.

Zaire, another of the eight Knights of Dawn was in the north-east location of the border of Lazarus. The north-west area around the border was the Watered Caverns, but the north-east locations was the Sun-Braced Grove, a lush forest with many fruit trees, vast grassy plains, and many lakes that cover the area. The sun was always shining around this area, and Zaire enjoyed to relax here.

"Hmm, I don't see what is so important about getting Naruto here this soon, if he comes he does, if he doesn't, then oh well, I mean fuck it." said Zaire as his eyes were closed, and he was laying in the grassy plains alone.

"The sun does feel great at least, that is something I am thankful for, if I decide to praise anything today." continued on Zaire as he fell asleep in the peaceful Sun-Braced Grove.

The Misty Hot-Springs were the south-west location where Andarius and Lunesto were, and the south-east location was the Holy Burial Grounds where only the Knights of Dawn themselves were given permission to enter, from their boss, the Apathetic Judge.

Five o'clock in the evening had came around, as Naruto, Sakura, Sai, and Shikamaru all arrived in Kakashi's office in order to be briefed on their mission.

"That about sums it up, each of you know the full details of this mission now, and I trust that, within a span of two weeks, you will be able to go to this location, and then return with information on all assets of this strange village." said Kakashi as he had finished his own paper-work for the day.

"What if this place is a trap, I mean it is located three hundred miles away from the border of the Land of Earth, so who know what kind of place it is." said Shikamaru.

"That is why I am here, I will fly in the air, and survey the surrounding area to ensure that no more of those soldiers try to ambush us." said Sai with a smile.

"I will smash anyone who gets in my way, plus, Sasuke will be out there too, he may not be part of our team, but he will be helping us, I am sure." said Sakura.

"Kurama, the final member of our team can instantly be summoned outside of me at anytime, and with his sheer power, he will be a good option should this whole situation turn out to be a mere trap." said Naruto as he gave Kurama a fist bump in his mind.'

"Naruto, thanks for mentioning me like this, but you don't have too, you can still call me Nine-Tails if you want." said Kurama as he was laying in an area of Naruto's conciousness relaxing.

"Nope, you are Kurama of the Hidden Leaf, and you are the fifth member of our team, whose goal is honor the request of this scroll which seems to be aimed at me." said Naruto with passion in his eyes.

"Heh, Naruto is getting pumped up to undertake this mission, I will do the same." said Sakura with joy.

"It's been a while Naruto, but this time, we can afford to have a little fun." said Shikamaru as he had six packs of cigarettes with him, and the lighter he received from Asuma.

"Yes, and maybe I can even draw a picture of the four of us after we complete our mission, you know, to celebrate the success." said Sai cheerfully.

"Hm, it sounds like you four, or rather, five are all ready to venture out, just follow the directions given by this scroll that Naruto has, and you should be their in a week's time, maybe even less." said Kakashi as he was wiping off his desk from accidentally spilling a cup of coffee on it.

"Hahahaha, Kakashi-sensei had one too many to drink, hehehe." laughed Naruto at his old sensei.

"Sheesh, anyway, be sure to leave shortly, at around two in the morning, I would take a rest." said Kakashi as he finished cleaning up his desk.

"Gotch'a, alright everyone let's go!" yelled Naruto with joy as Hinata was outside of the office.

"You better be careful Naruto, I will have another surprise for you once you return." said Hinata with a blush on her face.

Sasuke had arrived in the Land of Wind, and was sitting outside of the border of Sunagakure.

"I guess there was no reason to notify Naruto after all, I can sense his excitement, somehow, but I will be following him, no, I will be following you Sakura, because I don't want anything to happen to you." said Sasuke to himself as he smiled thinking of the child that Sakura was bearing.

"Sarada, that would be a good name, I better tell her that, once she returns from this mission." said Sasuke as he had a picture of himself and Sakura standing in a cherry blossom field, this picture being the only one of them together since their old Team Seven photo.

"Come home safe." said Sasuke as he entered the Hidden Sand with plans to speak with Gaara on the occurrences of Camp Abraham's invasion of the Hidden Leaf.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 014...-**


	14. The Purge of Abraham

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 014: The Purge of Abraham**

Naruto and his team consisting of Sakura, Sai, and Shikamaru had left Konohagakure at around five in the evening and were headed to the border of the Land of Wind, which would be their first checkpoint.

Sasuke was headed towards Gaara's office in order to speak with him about the turn of events that had shaped in the recent days.

Four hours have now passed, the time is nine in the evening, as Antoine Keido had gathered with the troops he was in charge of, Camp Abraham. Their tents and barracks were stationed to the upper left of the city of Lazarus, near the Castle of Leviticus.

"If I am correct, we will be conducting an execution of a village in the far end of the Land of Earth, which is near our location." said Antoine as he was reading over a report he received from Dreatoen.

"Sir, there should only be civilians there, is it really in our best wishes to kill innocent people for no good reason, it is not like when Sheppard's platoon invaded Konoha!" said a soldier amongst the platoon that was gathered in the barracks to the west of Camp Abraham's establishment.

"Do not question me, what I receive is from the Apathetic Judge himself, now, we would not want to upset him, and there is no innocent people in this world anyway." said Antoine with a fierce tone.

"There are one hundred of you who are under my command, originally one hundred and twenty, but those men lost their lives or were captured during our raid of Konoha." said Antoine as he started to give a speech to fire his men up for their mission.

"Sheppard was killed by the jutsu that was placed in him, all for the sake of preventing the enemy from extracting information from this wonderful city." continued on Antoine.

"We will not let Sheppard's life be in vain, Naruto himself will be heading towards the city, no doubt, and when he arrives, our boss will finally get what he wants, but for now, we are to kill all of the inhabitants of this village, Testuga will be here shortly to give you all a more thorough description of what we are to do, he will also be coming with you during the mission, I will be attending to another manner, see you all later." finished Antoine as he waved goodbye to his soldiers and ran off towards the Castle of Leviticus.

"I will personally be glad to eliminate anyone who does not accept our way of living as an absolute standard." said Greshem, one of the elite soldiers in Antoine's Camp Abraham.

"I concur, and when Tetsuga gets here, we will know the exact procedure to undertake." said another soldier as they eagerly awaited the arrival of Tetsuga in the barracks.

"Thank you gentlemen for all waiting for me, I was busy sending my report of my search for the spy by our southwest gate, to the higher ups, but I will now relay that information to you all as well." said Tetsuga with a grin.

"I am Greshem, I have taken over for Sheppard as the general of Abraham, and it's second in command, I will look over these plans with you." said Greshem.

"Fine, while I was in the Watered Caverns, I had sensed a chakra that would occasionally appear, only to disappear a few moments later, I spent three hours searching for the perpetrator, but was unable to find him or her, though I have strong suspicion to believe that he lives in this village that is in close proximity to us." said Tetsuga.

"What would the name of this village be?" asked Greshem as he had the other soldiers in the barracks gather their ninja tools together.

"Amazeo Village is the name of our destination, it is only thirty miles west of us, and since we are located on the far end of the border of the Land of Earth, that would be the closest town in our proximity, and would make the most sense for that place to be home to this spy as well." said Tetsuga who was anxious to reach Amazeo Village and find the spy.

"What time our we to leave and purge this worthless city?" asked a soldier with anticipation.

"Oh, my good friend, we will be leaving at two in the morning, we will use the night as cover, and we should be finished within only a few hours." laughed Tetsuga as he finished briefing Antoine's camp on the assignment.

Naruto and his team had stopped about half way to the border of the Land of Wind as they decided to rest for the night.

"This should be a good place to rest for the night, if what that scroll had in it was true, then we still have some ways to go." said Sai who was not looking forward being away from Ino for all of this time.

"Oh relax Sai, be excited, we will finally be able to track down these bastards for what they tried to instigate on our village, and for tracking down Naruto as a target." said Sakura as she laid down beside a tree.

"In any case, I will use Sage Mode, in a clone of course, while we sleep so that we are not ambushed." said Naruto who did not want to stay up all night himself.

"That sounds good to me, I will analyze this map contained in the scroll more tomorrow, but for now let's all get some rest, we will have plenty of time to talk in the morning." said Shikamaru as he yawned and seemingly fell asleep instantly.

"He sure was tired, eh, might as well get myself to sleep as well, although the excitement of finding out who this boss is might even keep me up." said Naruto with enthusiasm.

"If you say so but, GO TO BED DAMMIT!" yelled Sakura as she and everyone else was trying to rest while Naruto was getting over eager about his mission.

"Oh fine, sheesh." said Naruto with a pout as he laid down and looked up at the stars, thinking of his and Hinata's unborn child.

Tetsuga and the one hundred remaining soldiers from Camp Abraham were all headed towards Amazeo village, as two in the morning came around.

"We will split into ten groups of ten, seems simple enough, Tetsuga can go with which ever group he desires, this will make the execution of our mission spot on." said one of the soldiers who was in the ten man team with Tetsuga.

"Tell four of those teams to stay thirty meters apart, and the other six will follow from behind, each of us shall be fifteen meters apart." said Greshem who was on one of the ten man teams in the front.

"This will work out fine, everyone get in formation, just in case we run into shinobi from Iwagakure or that spy." said Tetsuga as he formed four quick hand signs and held his hands in the snake formation, waiting to activate a jutsu should the situation call for it.

The four formations of soldiers in the front reached a cliff that overlooked the Amazeo Village, which was surrounded by a valley, and appeared to be the only village visible to anyone.

"Heh, there is no sign of any neighboring villages in the area, I guess being this far into the Land of Earth is a disadvantage to this town after all, and to beat it all, I cannot sense any shinobi in the area." said one of the sensor soldiers in the closest team to the edge of the cliff.

The six teams of ten soldiers, plus Tetsuga all arrived behind the four teams in the front shortly after, and awaited commands from the sensor soldiers on when to act.

"From what I heard over my radio, Raize, one of the soldiers in the front formation, told me that there is no shinobi in that village, so executing all of the residents there should go smoothly." said Greshem with joy.

"Perhaps the spy himself can hide his chakra, or maybe he is not even from Amazeo Village, but, oh well, this way we can send a message to anyone who dares trifle in the affairs of our great and kind god, the Apathetic Judge." said Tetsuga as he prepared to activate his jutsu that he stored earlier.

"Magnet Release: Homing Fuma Shuriken Electromagnetic Reflux!" yelled Tetsuga as a wave of magnetism surrounded all of the weapons that were in the pockets of the soldiers around him.

"I will have my Magnet Release Jutsu on standby should we run into any threats, I do not want any more of you men to die, you are like brothers to me." said Tetsuga as he shed a tear thinking of the soldiers who did not return after the false invasion of Konohagakure.

"We will all approach Amazeo from ten different corners, and use only small scale attacks to kill the men, women, and children who reside their, those weapons floating above us, under Tetsuga's control, are for armed combatants only." said Kilon, another sensor soldier in the front group of soldiers.

"Let's go!" said Greshem as the four groups of soldiers in the front departed first, with the other six behind them, making sure to be quiet in the process.

The residents of Amazeo village were all either in bed, or were getting ready to do so, unsuspecting of their own approaching demise.

"Mommy, I see something." said a little boy to his mother in the closest house near the south end of Amazeo village.

"Now son, you are probably just tired, relax, we will go visit your uncle tomorrow, I promise." said the mother with a smile as she kissed her son on the forehead before leaving to her own bed.

"I love you mom." said the boy quietly as he started to fall asleep.

"I sure cannot wait to see Hira's smile when his dad returns from Iwagakure." said the mother as she went to lock her door.

"Now, what to make for dinner tomorro..." is all the mother could say as Greshem kicked down her door and rammed a sword through her throat, not allowing her to scream.

"I sense a small chakra in the bedroom upstairs, I will take it out." said one of the soldiers that appeared behind him.

"Mommy, mommy, are you okay?" asked the little boy, Hira as he heard something fall onto the floor.

The boy started to run down the steps, only to see a man covered in turbans and a mosk, carrying the dead, headless body of his mother.

"Mom, nooo, why did you do this, oh... ...god." said the boy as he fell into a catatonic state from the sight of his headless mother.

"Oh don't cry child, you and your mother will be able to talk all day in Heaven." said the soldier with a smile as he raised his kunai above the boy's head.

"Please sir, why are you doing this?" asked the young boy with medium length-shaggy black hair.

"Because I am a Shinobi, and Shinobi kill." said the soldier as he rammed the kunai into the top of the boy's head, killing him instantly. A small shriek came out of the boy's mouth as he fell to the floor with the kunai in his head.

"Hehehehe, take that you heathen, that is for not acknowledging the Apathetic Judge as your savior." said the soldier as he left the house to join the others.

"Run, we are under attack." said an elderly man as he was impaled by Tetsuga from behind with a kunai.

"You are not under attack, this is ethnic cleansing, you old piece of shit!" said Tetsuga with a severe look of anger that showed so much, a vein could be seen bulging above his head.

"This is like a feeling of such peace and relief to kill these godless scum." thought Tetsuga to himself as a tear fell from his eye.

Most of the children in the town were all killed with kunai through the throat, since their fragile necks were easy to tear off. The older inhabitants were also killed off easily.

"I will end this now, no need to drag it on, let's not even bother blowing this place up either, just leave it the way it is." said Tetsuga as the one hundred soldiers had all easily killed all three hundred inhabitants of Amazeo Village with no problem.

"Tetsuga release his jutsu as all of the weapons he had under control of his Magnet Release impaled and dismembered the remaining children and adults that were left.

A child, who was impaled by a sword, managed to survive and stood in front of Tetsuga with a look of sadness in his eye.

"I will...not let my friends...and family die..." said the little girl as her head was cut clean off by a fuma shuriken that Tetsuga had behead her from behind.

"Well too fucking bad, it looked like we just did you dumb little whore!" yelled Greshem with a look of absolute perverse in his eyes.

"We have finished killing these lost souls, and the Earth is one step closer to being back to the way God wants it, too bad that spy was not here." said Tetsuga who did not appear to share Greshem's enthusiasm about murdering the child in front of him.

The one hundred soldiers all followed behind Tetsuga as every villager in Amazeo Village was dead. They arrived back at the gates of Lazarus at around six in the morning.

Antoine was waiting by the entrance when he noticed his blood-stained soldiers all marching proudly.

"I assume Tetsuga ran this operation well, all of the villagers of Amazeo are dead, right?" asked Antoine with curiosity.

"Yes, the mission is complete, we can now occupy that village and expand our own forces." said one of the many soldiers as they returned to their barracks.

"This will definatley send a message to Iwagakure not to mess with us, next stop, Sunagakure, I will take great joy in killing some villagers there." said Lunesto as he was in the nearby vicinity of Antoine watching the soldiers from Abraham return to the barracks as the sun was getting ready to rise.

Sasuke had arrived in Gaara's office and started to speak with him as the sunrise was only an hour away in Sunagakure.

"So, Orochimaru is going after them himself?" asked Gaara as he heard everything that Sasuke had told him.

"Yes, their boss goes by the name, The Apathetic Judge, and his henchmen are known as The Knights of Dawn." continued on Sasuke.

"You said they probably want to kill Naruto, if this is true, we need to host an emergency Kage Summit in the Land of Iron as soon as possible." said Gaara to himself as Kankuro and Temari had already left to notify the other shinobi in the village of this information.

"Okay, I will tell the other three Kage this information, I have a feeling that things are about to really get bad." said Sasuke as he started to feel a little dizzy when he left Gaara's office.

"Don't overdo it." said Gaara with concern.

"I will sleep when I'm dead." said Sasuke who knew he had no time to waste in warning the other Kage of what Orochimaru told him.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 015...-**


	15. After the Amazeo Village Disaster!

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 015: After the Amazeo Village Disaster!  
**  
The soldiers of Abraham and Tetsuga had murdered all of the villagers of Amazeo Village and had returned to Lazarus to report back to Antoine.

"I see, the spy was not there after all, oh my, and all of those people, dead for no reason." said Antoine with a look of sorrow.

"No, don't mourn them, they were dead long before we got to them." said Tetsuga with an emotionless look on his face as he walked by Antoine.

"In any case, we suffered no casualties ourselves, so now we can plan which village we attack next in the general area." said Greshem with anticipation.

"We do not just kill civilians for the hell of it, we do it, in order to allow them to leave this terrible world and be together in the afterlife." said Antoine as he held up a kunai to Greshem in a threatening manner.

"Sorry sir, you are right." said Greshem with a panicked look on his face.

"I suggest you and the others return to the barracks at once, before I kill you." said Antoine as he turned into a ball of plasma and drifted into the sky.

"Does he not like what we had to do?" asked a soldier standing near Greshem.

"I don't know, but why should he care about those villagers, they were nothing, it's like they never even existed anyway." said Greshem as he and the other soldiers returned to their post.

Seven in the morning came about, as Naruto was the first to wake up amongst his team.

"Man, morning has came, this is day two of our journey, it should only take us seven to reach the destination marked in this scroll." said Naruto to himself quietly.

"Though I do wonder who this guy is that wants to meet me so badly, what is he like, and why is he so intent on meeting me like this?" asked Naruto to Kurama in his mind.

"I do not know either, but I could sense nothing but ill will in those three men and soldiers when they invaded the village, so it cannot be something halfway decent." said Kurama with a scowl.

"That is what I was thinking, if their boss is my number one fan, I guess that could be interpreted a few different ways." said Naruto as Shikamaru woke up.

"Oh goodness, that was an uncomfortable dream, I was too worried about the chances of this mission going awry." said Shikamaru to Naruto as he stretched out.

"I am back, I woke up around six in the morning, figured I would go off a little and paint some of these trees around us." said Sai as he returned shortly after.

"Did you see anything suspicious out there?" asked Naruto.

"Well, this one flower was a cross between a daisy and a tulip." said Sai.

"That is not what I mean dammit!" said Naruto.

"I am awake now, one cannot sleep through all of this yelling." said Sakura as she was upset about the manner in which she awoke.

"Shikamaru, what do you think we should do now?" asked Naruto as the four shinobi packed up their bedrolls and tents and headed towards the Land of Wind's border, which would be their first checkpoint.

"Just do what you would normally do, Naruto." said Shikamaru.

"Ummm, okay, I guess." said Naruto who had the boss of the soldiers that invaded his village, on his mind.

"Hmmm, should we run into any opposition, I have finally stored enough chakra to surge my taijutsu and genjutsu to new heights." said Sakura to herself quietly as the four man team all hopped the trees of the sunny forest of the Land of Fire towards their next destination.

In Sunagakure, Temari and Kankuro had returned to Gaara's office a few hours after Sasuke left.

"So, there is someone around the Land of Earth that wished to invade the Five Shinobi Villages, who would wonder why this could be?" asked Kankuro with a look of confusion on his face.

"It is probably some extremists from minor villages, and other locations, that had banded together after the war ended, in order to take the larger nations down." said Temari to Kankuro.

"No, I don't think so, not from what Sasuke told me, it seems to be something more professional than that, seems more like an official army to me." said Gaara with concern.

"You mean these bastards could wage another war if they wanted to?" asked Kankuro with disbelief.

"Maybe, although I doubt that is what their goal is." said Gaara as he awaited for Sasuke to return with more information.

"All of our villagers and shinobi know of this, and now we will wait for Konohagakure, Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Kirigakure to respond back in relations to this new occurrence." said Temari to her brothers.

"Yes, that is all we can do." said Gaara thinking of Naruto.

Sasuke had been using his Amenotejikara to rapidly advance throughout the land, and had arrived near the Land of Earth, as he planned on notifying the Tsuchikage next.

"I should be there in around twenty minutes, I just hope the people of this village have forgiven me over these past two years, but even if they have not, we still have a much larger threat to deal with." thought Sasuke to himself, thinking of when he attacked the Five Kage Summit.

A few more hours passed, as Naruto and his team had arrived at the border of the Land of Wind.

"I wonder why these directions did not have us just travel through Kusagakure, instead of taking the long way around through the Land of Wind, then Ishigakure, and finally the Land of Earth?" asked Shikamaru to himself.

"That is a good question, but at least we bought plenty of rations with us to accommodate the long journey." said Sakura.

"Naruto, why don't you just fly, and have that Nine Tails carry the rest of us?" asked Sai, knowing of what Naruto was really capable of.

"I have to spare as much chakra as possible, plus we would be spotted a hell of a lot easier too Sai, come on you were in the Root once, use your brain for once." said Naruto as he felt good returning a joke at Sai for all of the times he was pestered in the past by the former Root member.

"Goodness you two, relax, but that is a good point, Naruto had shown that he can fly when that Kaguya had teleported us above the lake of lava, but I just assumed that power came from the Sage." said Sakura.

"No, I can still use the Sage's Six Paths Senjutsu, though only in the most dire needs, let's just hope such an occurrence does not take place on this mission." said Naruto with concern.

"You mentioned Ishigakure earlier, I have never been there myself, it goes by another name, the Village Hidden in the Stones." said Shikamaru.

"Sounds like the name that Iwagakure goes by." said Sakura.

"Both villages have similar terrain, but the climate for Ishigakure is usually always rainy and foggy, unlike the sunny weather in Iwagakure." said Shikamaru.

"I see, well, nothing to do now but continue along this road surrounded by oil derricks." said Sai as the four shinobi traveled down a long road on the side of the desert surrounded by power lines, oil derricks, and construction sites.

Sasuke had arrived in Iwagakure around one in the afternoon, and was quick to arrive at the Tsuchikage's mansion.

Kurotsuchi spotted him, but was unable to recognize him.

"Oh my, who is this handsome fellow?" asked Kurotsuchi to herself as she walked towards Sasuke.

"I need to speak with Ohnoki on the manner of Konohagakure being attacked by soldiers from the city of Lazarus, which resides in your own country." said Sasuke with a serious tone.

"You serious, well, gramps is bored to death, he will be happy, well I mean upset to hear this, hehehe." laughed Kurotsuchi as she and Sasuke arrived in the Tsuchikage's office.

"Hey geezer wake up, some kind of messenger is here to tell you something of great value." said Kurotsuchi loudly.

"Eh, what, what the hell is with all of the damn commotion, jeez!" yelled Ohnoki as he fell from his chair and all of his paper work flew around the room.

"Once you are comfortable, I wish to speak with you about a threat that I believe to be in your own country, a place called Lazarus." said Sasuke with his Sharingan and Rinnegan de-activated.

"Hmmm, this kid looks familiar, but I cannot place it on my mind who he is." said Ohnoki to himself.

"W...wait, did you say a threat resides in our own country?" asked Ohnoki with surprise.

"Yes, I am Sasuke Uchiha, I act on behalf of Kakashi Hatake, the Sixth Hokage, and I have already spoken with the Fifth Kazekage, Gaara on this manner as well." said Sasuke with a calm tone.

"Oh, I remember you, good to see that you and Naruto had resolved your issues after all, hohoho." laughed Ohnoki with a jolly laugh.

"But, if this manner is as serious as you say, and if this city called Lazarus resides in our own Land of Earth, I will personally escort a brand of soldiers from the Alliance around my own village to investigate." said Ohnoki.

"I heard this information from Orochimaru, and although most of the world hates him, I have a deep connection, a honest one with him, and he is also trying to stop this Lazarus from carrying out whatever goal they have in mind." said Sasuke firmly.

"I see, Orochimaru must be more interested in what you do, rather than attacking the Leaf again." said Ohnoki.

"Well, our village was attacked, but these Knights of Dawn, eight shinobi who work for the city of Lazarus, each one of them is on the level of a member of the Akatsuki, I believe." said Sasuke thinking back to his fight with Jesei Leikough.

"Damn, I would have never guessed, any idea on who could be the mastermind behind this whole thing?" asked Ohnoki with shock.

"He goes by the name, The Apathetic Judge, and his is the leader of the entire city, and he also commands these Knights of Dawn as well." said Sasuke.

"I have a scroll that will tell you more information in detail, I must head towards Kumogakue next, and notify them, it should only take me one day with my teleportation." said Sasuke as he started to leave the office.

"Sasuke wait, if Gaara had not already suggested it, we could hold a new Five Kage Summit in the Land of Iron, to discuss this new threat." said Ohnoki.

"Gaara already suggested the idea, and he agrees as well." said Sasuke as he was determined to get the word out to all of the Kages.

"He just disappeared gramps, wow, he was hot too." said Kurotsuchi who was blushing.

"You stupid young people, just remember everything that Sasuke told us, if Lazarus is close by to our home territory, we are in the most danger." said Ohnoki thinking of who this Apathetic Judge could possibly be.

Elsewhere, Lehourihm Nante and Dreatoen Morea were standing on one of the balconies located on the Castle of Leviticus discussing their next move.

"Naruto Uzumaki should be here within the week, six days to be more exact, and I wonder if he will bring any friends with him?" asked Dreatoen with a smirk on his face.

"Perhaps, but why are the directions to our village so out-of-the-way, it just makes the journey for Naruto longer and more inefficient." said Lehourihm to Dreatoen.

"That is a good point, but our boss wanted it that way when he created the Invitation, besides, Jesei has left for Ishigakure, the place where Naruto and his lackeys should be arriving at soon anyway." said Dreatoen as he walked back into one of the towers on top of the castle.

"I just don't see the point of beating around the bush, if this Naruto is as special as The Apathetic Judge said, then why put off the onset of meeting him?" asked Lehourihm to himself as he hopped down the various walls of the castle in order to head towards the center of the city.

Jesei was traveling to Ishigakure on his own, hoping to arrive there before Naruto and his team would.

"Heh, I wonder how the mission at Amazeo went, hehehe, I have my own mission to worry about anyway." said Jesei to someone on the other end of a radio call.

"The proceeds of the mission went well, all of those godless heathens got what was coming to them, breaking down the will of the Land of Earth will benefit us greatly." said a deep, seemingly psychotic voice on the other end of the radio.

"Yes, boss, I understand, who is with Naruto, if you do not mind me asking?" exclaimed Jesei as five in the evening of Naruto's second day on his journey rolled around.

"Sakura Haruno, apprentice of Tsunade Senju, Shikamaru Naara, son of Shikaku, and Sai, son of Leihon and Amizu Orisha, although Danzo killed them and took him into Root himself." said the Apathetic Judge across the radio to Jesei with a deep, booming tone.

"Okay, I now know what to expect, I will use my Sacred Sword of Rah'Zuh, Kommittomentto, to help me." said Jesei as he had his scroll with him.

"That is all well, test out the abilities of Sakura Haruno, see if she is worthy of being a shinobi on Uzumaki's team, be sure to look out for other intrusions as well." said the Apathetic Judge as he ended the call.

"I will boss, I will." thought Jesei to himself as he ran in a valley full of oak trees on his way through the Land of Earth, on his way to Ishigakure.

"This will be of the most amazing caliber of battles I could dream of, I cannot wait." said Jesei to himself as he was excited at facing Sakura in combat.

A team of Iwagakure Shinobi had arrived at the town of Amazeo Village, only to see the dead three hundred civilians with vultures picking away at their dead bodies in the sun-baking heat.

"What the fuck, what happened here?" asked one of the Hidden Stone Shinobi.

"Who ever did this is a dead man!" said the captain of the platoon of seven Iwagakure Shinobi who had Shinobi Alliance headbands on.

"Hira is dead, and your wife too, you do not want to see the bodies, sir." said one of the shinobi with tears in his eyes.

"Hira, Isa, no, nooooooo!" yelled the father with agony as he fell to his knees, the other six shinobi also kneeled with him and placed their hands on him for comfort.

"Isa, Hira, I swear, I will kill whatever motherfucking bastard did this to you, do you hear me!" yelled the man as his eyes were bloodshot and tears rolling down his cheeks.

"Joakim, don't worry we will avenge these villagers, the killers did not do a good job of covering their foot steps." said one of the shinobi as he pointed at foot prints in the dirt leading west of Amazeo.

"Good, now, to do the same to them as they did to these poor villagers." said Joakim as he had a Kunai marked with a symbol in his left hand.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 016...-**


	16. Sakura's New Found Ability

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 016: Sakura's New Found Ability**

A group of shinobi from Iwagakure had arrived at the location of Amazeo Village, one day after the massacre.

"I swear I will kill whoever did this to you all!" said Joakim, one of the shinobi that were present as he held up a kunai marked with a strange symbol.

"Sir, the footsteps, they lead over this way, across that mountain range, that has to be where these bastards who did this fled to." said one of the other shinobi present.

"We will follow this trail, and when we find someone suspicious, we will kill them!" said Joakim with a look of murderous intent in his eyes.

"Earth Release: Rock Crevice!" yelled Joakim as he created a large hole in the ground outside of Amazeo Village.

"Let's give these three hundred lives a proper burial at least, no need for them to have to see this horrible world anymore." said Joakim as he and the other Iwagakure shinobi carried out this task.

"We will follow this trail of footsteps at once." said one of the soldiers as seven in the evening came about.

Naruto, Sakura, Sai, and Shikamaru were all on there second day of travel since leaving the Hidden Leaf, and they were several miles within the Land of Wind, Naruto made sure that he was following the directions in the scroll completely as he did not want the mission to go awry.

"It is approaching night, it seems we should be in Ishigakure by tomorrow at the latest." said Shikamaru as he was analyzing the environment around them, a vast desert on both sides of the road.

"This is the same desert that we went through when our old team was sent to Sunagakure after Gaara was kidnapped by the Akatsuki." said Sakura to Naruto as the four man team ran briskly up the road.

"Yes, though it seems that this road has been paved recently." said Naruto.

"This desert should be our last checkpoint before we close in on the border of the Land of Roses, where Ishigakure is housed." said Sai as he was studying his own map that Ino gave him.

"It is weird that none of those soldiers from before have tried to get in our way, seems that they would want to limit our progress, yet in these past two days, nothing has happened." said Shikamaru with concern.

"They probably are in wait at their home village, I have not sensed anyone around since we left." said Naruto.

"It always pays to be careful none the less." said Sai as a transparent, mirror-like being was trailing them.

Jesei was taking a rest near a tree by a river bank, and had his eyes closed, focusing on the figure following Naruto's location.

"I have been using this jutsu for about two hours now, since I am closer to Naruto's proximity, it has made the Mind Release: Shadow Crawler Jutsu far more effective." said Jesei with a smirk on his face as he planned to do something with the Konoha team before they even arrived in the Land of Roses.

Sai was still looking over his map, Naruto was studying the directions marked on the scroll, and Sakura and Sai were looking at the desert terrain surrounding them, as they were oblivious to the invisible creature, created by Jesei's jutsu, following them.

"I hope they have a good ramen export shop somewhere on this trail, these dirty crackers and jelly do not cut it!" complained Naruto as his stomach began to growl.

"Hey, it's food, and that is all that matters." said Sakura firmly.

"I agree with Naruto, they are almost as bad as your food pills Sakura." laughed Sai jokingly.

"Okay, go ahead and laugh, but when your ass is beaten up one day and you need one of my pills, don't even bother asking!" said Sakura angrily.

"Geez you guys, let's just focus, we can joke around in three hours when we take a break, we should be halfway to the Land of Roses once that time reaches around." said Shikamaru with optimism.

"Gotch'a captain, Sakura, Sai, let's boost ahead at full throttle!" said Naruto as he ran at high speeds without even breaking a sweat.

"He is going to leave us in the damn dust." said Sai.

"He has always had a lot of energy, I guess it is only natural that the idea of reaching his destination keeps him far more motivated than us." said Shikamaru knowing of Naruto's character very well.

"I wish I could stay motivated like him all of the time, it just seems like he never falters." said Sakura as the invisible figure closed in behind her and lunged it's hand forward to grab her.

"Excellent, I can take out Sakura here, and this will surely anger Naruto to no end, on the other hand, Sakura can prove herself and show us that she is one of the three great heroes of the number seven, the number of the human." said Jesei from within the mind of the transparent figure.

The figure grabbed Sakura by the back of her shirt, while she was running swiftly, causing her to crash to the ground at a high impact.

"Sakura, what the hell did you trip over something?" asked Naruto as he was quick to run back to check on Sakura's condition.

"Ninja Art: Super Beast Extermination!" yelled Sai as two large Axes were drawn on his artist scroll and were manifested in reality.

"Shadow Circle Jutsu!" proclaimed Shikamaru as he created a ring of shadow using the nearby shadow of the sunset as a base.

"Ugh, what the hell, something grabbed me from behind." said Sakura as she seemed to shake off the fall very well.

"Mind Release: Adam's Protective Whim!" yelled a voice from the transparent figure as Sakura seemed to disappear without a trace.

"Whoa, what the hell, Sakura just vanished, I don't understand!" yelled Sai with great worry.

"I am using Sage Mode, but I cannot detect anything but a faint scent of her chakra, and strange enough, she is still in the same location, we just cant feel or see her." said Naruto as he was trying to make sense of what just occurred.

"I will keep the Shadow Circle Jutsu on standby, try to figure this out Naruto." said Shikamaru.

Sakura awoke in a black sphere with a purple light surrounded by vines and red berries. The sphere was around one hundred feet tall and three hundred feet wide.

The purple light was up in the top center of the sphere, with half of the sphere merged into the ground, creating a flat surface to walk on. The area within was dark, but there was just enough light to see ten feet ahead.

"I must have got caught in some kind of jutsu, but Naruto would have sensed anyone who was even remotely close to us, this makes no sense." said Sakura as he had her right hand clenched.

"It's not a jutsu that one can sense through chakra alone, but don't worry, you should have no trouble, Sakura Haruno, disciple and successor of Tsunade's teachings." said a voice from further within the depths of the sphere.

"Where is everyone else, and who are you?" asked Sakura angrily.

"This is an alternate dimension, no one can see you or feel you, yet you are not actually gone, the physical body of yours is still present, it's just no one can see it as long as you are in this sphere of mine." said the voice as the transparent figure appeared in front of Sakura and made itself visible.

"You, you were one of those three men who invaded the village and gave Naruto that scroll, what are you doing here?" asked Sakura surprised.

"Relax, this is but a copy of me, I am merely here to test your capabilities, that is all, if you die, it is because you are trash!" said the figure who resembled Jesei, as if it was a Shadow Clone.

"It can't be a shadow clone, but only one way to tell!" yelled Sakura as she ran towards the copy of Jesei and threw a shuriken at it.

The copy of Jesei dodged the shuriken and countered by throwing a shuriken of it's own.

"Come on, you think this will get me." said Sakura as she was not concerned about the predicament.

"Shadow Shuriken Jutsu!" yelled the copy of Jesei as the one shuriken turned into fifty.

"Now this is a problem." said Sakura as the fifty shuriken closed in on her.

"Heh, with the limited visibility in this dimension, you will have a hard time dodging them all." said the copy of Jesei with confidence.

"Oh really." proclaimed Sakura as she nimbly dodged all fifty of them as quickly as they approached her.

Not a single shuriken managed to graze her as she remained unharmed.

"Oho, that was nice, I have never seen anyone dodge this jutsu without at least one scratch." said the copy with surprise.

"I need to hurry this up so I can get out of here and we can presume our mission!" said Sakura as she jumped in the air above the copy and raised her leg in the air.

"Cherry Blossum Crash!" yelled Sakura as she slammed her foot onto the ground causing the copy to fall and the surrounding area to crumble, though the barrier itself remained intact.

"Impressive, but that will not cut it, the only way to escape this jutsu is to kill this copy of me, hehehe." laughed Jesei through the clone as it got up and prepared a jutsu.

"Hmmm, I might as well use my own new technique, it seems to be the only way to end this quickly." said Sakura as the diamond on her forehead disappeared, created a series of markings around her eyes and face, different from the Strength of a Hundred Seals Technique.

"What is this, I have never seen a jutsu like this before, but no matter." said the clone to itself as it finished it's hand signs and casted it's jutsu.

"Mind Release: Self Doubt!" yelled the copy as Sakura started to run towards the copy.

"Time to show off the...huh, why is my mind feeling hazy, it feels as if I cannot focus at all." said Sakura as she was stopped running and fell to the floor.

"Even though Sasuke was able to not be effected by the jutsu, this one does not possess the Rinnegan, so this time it should work." said Jesei through the copy.

"I am having doubts about my own skills, but why, I must find a way to break through." thought Sakura to herself as she began to have a cold feeling in her chest.

"No matter the confidence of an individual, even the slightest moment of doubt can throw them into a situation of delusion and despair." said the copy of Jesei as it approached Sakura with a katana that seemed to be emitted from the purple glow at the core of the barrier.

"I am dissapointed, you have always wanted to stand out amongst Team Seven, yet here you are again, writhing in fear and having doubts about yourself, pathetic." said the copy as it stood above Sakura and raised the katana in the air.

"Damn, this is bad, move body, dammit, move!" thought Sakura to herself as she was sweating profusely.

"Die, you heathen, you don't deserve the be associated with the golden hero Naruto Uzumaki in the slightest." said the copy with a smirk on it's face as the katana approached Sakura.

"Mastery of the Hundred Seals Technique!" yelled Sakura as her shoulder was pierced by the Katana.

"I don't know what you just did, but it seems to be in vain." said the copy as it took the katana out of Sakura's shoulder with blood pouring from the blade.

"You want to know what I did, I had faith in myself, that is what I just did!" yelled Sakura as she thrusted her index and ring fingers into the forehead of the copy softly.

"Hehehe, a tap on the forehead, did you loose all of your strength from that injury?" asked the copy with laughter.

Sakura removed her fingers from the forehead of the copy and stumbled back, almost falling to the ground, but she managed to keep her footing.

"Three, two, one." said Sakura with a smile as she looked at the copy of Jesei with determination in her eyes.

"Has my jutsu droven you mad, what are you so confident about...huh, what the hell?" asked the copy as blood started to pour from it's ears, eyes, mouth, and nose.

"Unlike the Chakra Enhanced Strength, or the Strength of a Hundred Seals technique, the Mastery of a Hundred Seals damages the opponent internally, rather than externally." said Sakura as the copy fell to the ground in agony.

"I feel like I am dying, ugh, this jutsu is similar to the Gentle Fist of the Hyuga, but more severe." said the copy as it started to fade away.

"Next time make sure that your will is greater than your opponents when you try to cause self doubt." proclaimed Sakura proudly.

"Good, good, when I meet you in person, show me the same determination that you did in this mock battle." said the clone as it faded away due to the effects of the injury.

"Huh, what did you say?" asked Sakura as the sphere around here cracked and the purple light, surrounded by vines and berries dissipated, causing the sphere to shatter.

Sakura suddenly found herself standing in front of Sai, Naruto, and Shikamaru just like she was prior to the clone's attack.

"Sakura, you did it, you overcame the jutsu!" said Naruto with joy.

"You are injured, what the hell happened, Naruto said he could sense you right here, yet you were gone, and we could not feel you?" asked Shikamaru with confusion.

The injury Sakura received had healed instantly as she stood up with a smile on her face.

"I will tell you about it later, I was attacked by a clone of one of those three men that left the village, but I managed to defeat it." said Sakura.

"Just give us the full details later, let's go to our next checkpoint!" said Naruto as he and the rest of his team ran off down the desert road.

Jesei opened his eyes after his clone was defeated.

"Damn, she is good, that clone was as powerful as me, but now I know what to expect, time to head to Ishigakure, I will be sure to be the victor next time." thought Jesei to himself with confidence, knowing of Sakura's new ability.

"Still though, how did she manage to come so far, everyone on this planet is just an ant compared to Naruto, she should be no different, she is just a fallacy to the golden hero, I will prove that in person if I have to!" said Jesei with anger as he ran pass the riverbank.

Joakim and the other Iwagakure shinobi arrived at the end of the footsteps of the soldiers of Abraham as the sun began to set.

"The trail ends here, they must have covered the rest of their tracks to prevent us following them to their base." said one of the Iwagakure shinobi.

"Then why not cover the rest of their tracks, is this a trap or something?" asked another shinobi.

"I don't care what it is, whoever tries to oppose us will die!" said Joakim with the intent of avenging his wife and son.

"Good, if you don't care, then you can ask them how bad the pain was when you meet them in Hell!" said Zaire as he appeared in the middle of the large canyon that the Iwagakure shinobi had arrived in.

"Are you one of those scoundrels you killed my family and home town?" asked Joakim with anger as he held his marked kunai above his head.

"No, but I will be the one who kills you cretins." said Zaire with blood shot eyes and a malevolent grin on his face.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 017...-**


	17. The Terror of Zaire Senju

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 017: The Terror of Zaire Senju**

Zaire stood in front of the seven Iwagakure Shinobi, after they had followed the footsteps of the attackers of their village.

"Look you trash, I don't know who you are but I suggest you leave now, I am here to kill whatever bastards murdered my family and village." said Joakim as he glared at the near seven foot Zaire.

"Yes, yes, you said that already, I am a member of the shinobi that killed your village, so I guess that means I am a target of you seven men as well." said Zaire with blood shot eyes.

"You motherfucker, everyone stand behind me, I will put this fucker on his ass!" yelled Joakim as he pointed his specially marked kunai towards Zaire.

"Huh, what the fuck is that thing, am I supposed to be fuckin' scared or something, I mean goddamn, I would not want to hurt any of your feelings or anything, hahahahahaaha!" laughed Zaire maniacally.

"Earth Release Teleportation Dagger Technique!" yelled Joakim as he threw the marked kunai at great speeds towards Zaire.

"The rest of you, use your jutsu now!" yelled Joakim to his six fellow Iwagakure shinobi.

"Earth Spiked Prison Technique!" yelled the six men as they combined their chakra to create a huge prison around Zaire made of crags of rock and spikes, with an opening for the kunai to strike.

"Heh, what the hell is this shit supposed to fuckin' do, hehehe?" laughed Zaire as he was not taking the situation seriously.

"Laugh at this, you backwoods ignorant fuck!" yelled Joakim as the kunai struck Zaire in the right side of his neck and immediately exploded into limestone that drenched the tall man and filled the earth prison.

"Only one more thing to do, light this baby up!" yelled Joakim as he and the other six shinobi used Fire Release: Fire Jet Stream Jutsu to harden the quicklime and create a burning rock that glistened as night came about.

"That piece of shit has one hell of tombstone, don't you think, Joakim?" asked one of the Iwagakure soldiers.

"Yep, that was a nice combo guys, now let's try to track down the rest of those fuckers before morning rises, after that, I will return to Iwagakure to report this incident to Lord Tsuchikage at once." said Joakim as he and his men started to walk on a trail that headed out of the canyon.

"Hey folks, what's the difference between jam and jelly?" asked Zaire with a deranged expression as he appeared in front of the seven shinobi, blocking the trial leading out of the canyon.

"What...what the fuck, how did you escape that jutsu, the kunai struck you right in the neck, you should have died from that alone." yelled Joakim with anger.

"Hehehe, you can't jelly your cock up a dead girl's ass." said Zaire in response to his previous nonsensical question.

"You are just a maniac, we will send you to hell now!" yelled one of the soldiers as they ran towards Zaire with a large hammer that he summoned out of a scroll.

"Oh, I guess no one appreciated the joke, oh well." said Zaire as he caught the hammer with his bare hands and broke the wooden handle of the weapon.

"Shit, backup, help!" said the distraught soldier as three more stood in front of them, each with axes and exploding tags.

"We will not let you harm anyone else, you sick fool." said another of the Iwagakure soldiers valiantly.

"Awww, we have some heroes over here, but do you know what fuckin' happens to heroes boys, they always end up with THEIR TAILS BETWEEN THEIR LEGS!" yelled Zaire as he help up his right fist and brought it down with great force on the head of the Iwagakure shinobi that was closest to him.

"Fuck, Ishami, are you okay?" asked Joakim as he was enraged further by this occurrence.

"Get him!" yelled the five Iwagakure shinobi that remained in front of Joakim as they all charged towards Zaire with great intensity.

"Okay, this will be some good exercise for me." said Zaire as he also ran towards the five shinobi and quickly vanished, only to appear behind them and started to perform hand signs.

"He is fast, how the hell did he do that?" asked one of the confused shinobi.

"Wood Release: Spiked Wood Spears Technique!" yelled Zaire as he caused several large trunks of wood to emerge from directly below the five soldiers, impaling all of them, before they could react.

"Fuck, fuck, damn, Joakim,...run." said one of the Iwagakure shinobi as he died from the injuries sustained from the Wood Release Jutsu.

"It looks like all five of them Iwagakure shinobi are dead, I guess you rock ninja are just a bunch of fuckin' pussies." said Zaire as he turned his attention to Joakim.

"Well, you killed my comrades too, I have nothing more to say to you, prepare to die!" said Joakim as he pulled out a sword and ran quickly in the direction of Zaire.

"Lava Release: Quicklime Prison Technique!" yelled Joakim as spat out a large stream of the substance towards Zaire.

"Listen pal, it is almost midnight by now, I am really bummed that no one found my joke funny earlier, and I also have nothing fun to really do, so I will take you as a prisoner, so I can have fun torturing you!" said the tall, long-haired muscular young man as he allowed the quicklime to surround him.

"Stupid, you did not even bother to dodge, and now I am going to cut that ugly mug of yours off!" yelled Joakim as he ran his sword through the neck of Zaire, beheading the man where he stood, or so he thought.

The beheaded body turned into a tree as Joakim was flustered, not knowing what to do now.

"That was the Wood Clone Technique, very good for fooling opponents into thinking they have you cornered, but it seems you did not see through it either." said Zaire as he stood right behind Joakim, with his left fist aimed at the Iwagakure shinobi's head.

"How do you know the Wood Release, from what we learned from shinobi of Konohagakure, Only Hashirama Senju could use it." said Joakim as he was not willing to give up yet.

"Well, Obito Uchiha, Madara Uchiha, Zetsu, and Danzo could also use it, but they were just copies, I am not a copy, and as for you, well, you will be my plaything." said Zaire as he rammed his fist towards Joakim's head.

"I will not let this happen!" yelled Joakim as he ducked, avoiding the punch, and retaliated by ramming his sword through Zaire's abdomen.

"Huh, you just stood their again, is this another wood clone?" asked Joakim who had lost his fighter's spirit.

"No, not this time." said Zaire as he grabbed Joakim's right hand, and tore it off with his bare hands.

"Fuck, ahhhhhhh!" screamed Joakim as he passed out due to the pain.

"Well, I had to do something to knock you out, and shock associated with sudden pain is the best way." said Zaire as he removed Joakim's sword from his abdomen and threw it away.

"You are coming back with me, anyone who opposes the Apathetic Judge does not deserve to live anyway." said Zaire as the stab wound on his abdomen seemed to heal immediatley.

Zaire carried the unconscious Joakim with him out of the canyon as midnight finally came around, Zaire was headed in the location of the Sun-Braced Grove, located outside of Lazarus.

Jesei was still traveling swiftly by foot, remembering how Sakura had overcame his jutsu.

"My Mind Release: Adam's Protective Whim Technique had never been trumped before, I guess I better make sure not to fall prey to that Mastery of a Hundred Seals when I fight that girl for real, she is very good after all." said Jesei as he decided to rest by a tree for the night.

Naruto and his team had decided to camp out in a cave located in the desert, as they were close to the border of the Land of Roses, where Ishigakure was located.

"We will be in the Land of Roses tomorrow, it will also be our third day on this mission, if my memory serves me correct." said Shikamaru as he leaned against a wall, smoking a cigarette.

"That was amazing Sakura, how you were able to overcome that bastard with the Mastery of a Hundred Seals Jutsu, I bet Tsunade would be jealous, hehehe." laughed Naruto as he congratulated Sakura on her accomplishment.

"Thank you Naruto, but there are many more effects of my jutsu that anyone have yet to see." said Sakura.

"That Sakura, she is probably strong enough to be a Kage in her own right, just like Naruto and Sasuke, I guess I am the weakest of Team Seven after all." thought Sai to himself, although he was quick to remember his wife, Ino waiting at home, which seemed to make him a little more happier.

"Let's get some rest for now, we will need it for what ever comes tomorrow." said Shikamaru.

Sasuke had arrived at the border of the Land of Lightning, and decided to take a rest of his own for the night, as it was now two in the morning.

"Tomorrow, I will tell the Raikage, and Mizukage of these occurrences, and then I can finally join Naruto, and help him against these freaks." thought Sasuke to himself as he kept his Rinnegan active and was looking for any spies or followers that may be in his location.

Antoine and Lehourihm had entered the further sections of the Castle of Leviticus, located in the mountain range that the castle was built on, the time was around three in the morning.

"I heard that Zaire had returned with an unconscious Iwagakure shinobi that he was able to confiscate." said Lehourihm with a blank stare as the two men exited the elevator that led to the basement floor of the back end of the castle.

Screams of despair and misery could be heard from all of the rooms located in the mental institution-like area of the castle.

The area had many pipes, which were leaking water that was dripping all over the floor, many overpasses, which had the windows blocked out, hung over the main walkway of the back end of the Castle of Leviticus. Shadows of people inside the overpass could be seen pushing gurneys with bodies through towards other rooms with more screams and cries.

"Man, the boss sure does have a busy crowd today, eh?" asked Antoine who did not seem bothered by the environment.

"We need to look through some reports pertaining to the location of Madara Uchiha's body, and what happened to it after he was expelled from Kaguya, following her defeat." said Lehourihm as the two men entered a hallway at the end of the main lobby of the nightmarish basement.

"The Intelligence Department is located down this hallway, I am sure Dreatoen will be there as well, he will probably help us find the document, he is the one that keeps these things in check after all." said Antoine as he had a can of tropical whisky in his left hand.

A man dressed in a doctor's suit and surgical mask greeted the two Knights of Dawn as they arrived at the Intelligence Department located deep in the catacombs of the basement of the castle.

"Dreatoen is not here, but he did anticipate that someone would be looking for this document, here it is, Lord Antoine and Lord Lehourihm." said the doctor as he bowed to the two men.

"Thank you Channard, we will be leaving now, be sure to keep the Slaughterhouse smelling fresh." said Lehourhim to the doctor as the two men left the area with the document in tow.

"So, are we going to revive Madara Uchiha and give him another shot at the Moon's Eye Plan?" asked Antoine with confusion.

"Well, he was betrayed by Kaguya Otsutsuki, and the boss believes that Madara deserves another chance to do things his way, so we will revive Madara, and our boss will seal the Ten Tails within him, allowing him to have a chance to redeem himself." said Lehourihm.

"Well, in any case before we go to meet the Apathetic Judge about this situation, we better go visit Orochimaru's brother, Hirudeguarn first, he will know how to use the Reanimation Jutsu." said Antoine as the two men returned back into the main lobby of the boiler room-like basement.

"Hirudeguarn Naga is on the fifth floor of the back end of the castle, he will tell us how to revive Madara, then we can go tell boss our discovery." said Lehourihm with a smile on his face.

Orochimaru and Team Taka had arrived at the border of the Land of Roses, as they decided to camp in for the night as well. Orochimaru stood on a limb of a tree keeping watch of the area in front of him, as Jugo joined him.

"Go hang out with Karin and Suigetsu, I wish to be alone." said Orochimaru to Jugo.

"They are asleep, besides, a lot of animals have been coming to me lately, telling me that a powerful chakra is in the vicinity of our location." said Jugo.

"I know, Naruto and a few others are on there way to Lazarus as well, let's just be sure that nothing happens to Naruto while he is out and about." said Orochimaru as he looked up at the moon as it slowly descended towards the mountainous horizon.

"Brother, what do you want from Naruto, what is it, could it be what I wanted from Sasuke?" asked Orochimaru with a smile on his face.  
 **  
-To be continued next time with Chapter 018...-**


	18. Field General in Route

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 018: Field General in Route  
**  
Zaire Senju was slowly walking down a long, winding road, towards Lazarus, as he was carrying the unconscious body of Joakim.

"Fuck, morning will be here soon, I will just drop this body in my ole' hiding place, and no one will surely find it, I am really looking forward to seeing what kind of man you truly are." said Zaire with a menacing tone as he continued to walk down the stone covered mountain side.

Morning came, as the third day of Naruto's journey to find the destination of the scroll came about.

"We sure did choose a terrible place to camp last night, didn't we." said Sai as he was very sore from the rough ground that he slept on.

"Oh, moving around will fix ya', besides, we are going to be arriving in the Land of Roses soon, come to think of it, I have never been there before, has anyone else?" asked Naruto as he stood up and looked at his reflection in the lake beside the campsite.

"I have never really paid any attention to this area before, so I do not know much about it, and that means it is dangerous for all we know." said Shikamaru with a cautious tone.

"It is possible that man that tried to off me will be there, I cannot say where he will be, but it could be a possibility that those other two men are also waiting to ambush us during our travels." said Sakura as she was stretching while dew fell from the Cherry tree behind her.

"You probably scared that old man off, he would be wise to not show himself again." said Naruto.

"Maybe, but if they are interested in you, it could mean that the rest of us are expendable in their eyes." said Sakura trying to think of a reason behind what has transpired lately.

"I have been going over the situation in my head, hundreds of times over, and it would seem that some sort of epiphany has risen." said Shikamaru as he finished packing up his kunai and special chakra knives.

"What would that be?" asked Naruto with curiosity.

"Think about it, for the past seven years, ever since the Chunin Exams, our mission to bring back Sasuke, the battle against Akatsuki, the Shinobi World War, during all of these various trials and conflicts, not once did we ever hear of these people, nor did they ever target you or our village." said Shikamaru with a serious tone.

"Maybe they were just waiting for the right time to act?" said Sai as the four shinobi started to walk out of the desert-oasis area of the Land of Wind and approach the border of the Land of Roses.

"No, I doubt that, with everything that has went on, and with the way those men spoke about how their boss was Naruto's biggest fan, it would seem that their interest in Naruto came only after he achieved the legendary status during the war." said Shikamaru with certainty.

"Wait, what does that mean in this context, though?" asked Naruto.

"It means they did not care about anything pertaining to you before, it is because of your status and accomplishments that they are after you, it appears to be different from when the Akatsuki trailed you." said Shikamaru.

"Well, I am already thinking about what I am going to say to my biggest fan when I meet him, and I will not be doing an autograph this time either." said Naruto with a sarcastic smirk as the four young warriors inched in on the Land of Roses.

Sasuke had arrived on the onset of Kumogakure, as he seemed to be in a hurry.

"I do not know what Naruto is doing now, could he have trailed those men alone, or did some others go with him, regardless, I will vanquish any of those unsightly freaks once I spread word to the two remaining Kages." said Sasuke as he entered Kumogakure, making sure not to be seen.

"Only the Raikage needs to know of my presence here, I am sure the rest of the villagers would not think too highly of me, and I don't blame them either." said Sasuke as he made use of Amenotejikara to swap places with rocks, and other minor objects to travel very fast towards the Raikage's mansion.

A was sitting at his desk, with Killer Bee in a chair in the corner looking over some pictures of a cannon similar to the one that they had prepared to destroy the moon, during Toneri's assault.

"Hey bro, if this moon man won't hurt us anymore, doesn't the idea of building a new machine like this seem to be totally bore, yeah, fool ya fool!" said Bee with an expressive tone.

"For the love of all things remotely precise, this machine is for a different purpose, didn't you like help building the previous one, or do you want the Iron Claw again?" asked A as he looked over several reports pertaining to future war treaties from minor villages.

"Hey bro, are we going to use this to fire people up at the moon, 'cause if that the case, I will feel like a real goon." said Bee.

"It really takes a special man to deal with this bullshit." thought A to himself thinking of Bee's antics during the days.

Darui arrived in the office, and had a scroll in his hand, with Killer Bee's name on it.

"Oh yeah, my special delivery is here, it is sure to be an item that I will hold very dear!" said Bee with great joy.

"Sorry sir, it is just a report on your ticket sales from your Rap-Enka style concert, it was a blunder, you should just stick to being the guardian of Kumogakure, you excel at that." said Darui with a dull tone.

"Hehehe, he is right Bee, I told you those concerts would be like torture to people's ears, hahahaha." laughed Gyuki in Bee's conscious mind.

"Damn, fool, that really hurts my vibe, I was looking forward to doing those concerts in order to thrive." said Bee with a disappointed tone.

"You best keep looking over the designs of that new cannon, it will need our approval by midnight at the latest." yelled the Raikage to his dim-witted brother.

"There is something else that is of great importance too." said a a voice from down the stairs as Sasuke arrived in the room, beside of Darui, with his Sharingan and Rinnegan deactivated.

"Hey bro, maybe this homeless fool is here to buy a ticket for my jam, if that is the case, then he must be my number one fan, oh...yea." said Bee as the Eight Tails could only face palm from Bee's ridiculous mannerisms.

"It's Sasuke you dumb ass, remember after the war he was pardoned of his crimes on the condition that he were to always be of help to Naruto." said A as he gave Bee an Iron Claw for his rude comment.

"What brings you here, sorry if I sound rude, no grudges held from the Summit, I swear." said Darui as he was unsure how to act.

"The Hokage, Kazekage, and Tsuchikage are all aware of this, but I am going to tell you of the occurrences of our village being invaded by a village called Lazarus." said Sasuke as he begun to tell the Raikage of the events that took place over the past two weeks.

"Lazarus, what a name, are they a group that is trying to steal my fame?" asked Bee as he immediatley recieved another Iron Claw from A for his moronic remark.

Naruto had arrived at the Border of the Land of Roses, with Shikamaru and Sakura to his left and right respectively. Sai was in the air on his ink bird, keeping watch as per usual.

"This road seems to go through a large forested area, the sunny skies seem to be covered with rain clouds and fog around here." said Shikamaru.

"Hey, look at all of these red and white roses in the forests around this road, they are beautiful, especially with the raindrops falling off of them." said Naruto thinking of picking some for Hinata.

"Easy there lovebird, we still have to traverse around fifty miles to reach Ishigakure, and we would be wise to take this slowly." said Shikamaru to Naruto.

"Hehehe, they are beautiful flowers none the less, though that old freak could be around here as well." said Sakura as she was looking over her shoulder every now and then just in case of another ambush.

"This time we will fight him as one, if we can capture someone like him, we could find out all of the information we need, then we can determine for sure if the directions in Naruto's scroll are genuine or not." said Sai as he looked over the valley of woods and lakes surrounded by beautiful rocky mountain ranges.

"I would not worry about that, if this guy that I have been hearing about really is so determined to meet me, he would not lie." said Naruto with a serious tone.

"Yeah, I would not want to piss you off either, but in any case, let me review this world map, I will study the layout of Ishigakure, this way we can predict the surroundings and use them to our advantage in the event of another ambush." said Shikamaru.

"You are always so tride and true with your words Shikamaru, you should be a writer, hehehe." laughed Naruto as he was enjoying the sights of the Land of Roses, with the thought of this mysterious man lingering in the darkest reaches of his subconscious.

"So, this is the whole story, eh?" asked the Raikage as he had heard everything that Sasuke had to say.

"Yes, this information is one hundred percent accurate, my Rinnegan was able to read through their motivations, after all." said Sasuke with sincerity.

"Okay, Bee here will accompany you on this mission, he has nothing better to do anyway." said A who was hoping to get rid of his brother as well.

"Yo man, I did not agree to his joint task, I mean come on I could not even find my whiskey flask." said Bee with a bummed out expression.

"Dammit Bee, just go with Sasuke to Kirigakure, then join Naruto helping out against those Knights of Dawn, got it?" asked A with a commanding tone.

"Yo, I am glad I get to leave yo' sight, you are always such a big fright." said Bee as he ran out of the room as quick as he could to avoid another Iron Claw from his brother.

"If Bee acts up, just use your Sharingan to make him think he is taking a hot tub bath, it will work." said A as he got back to his paper work.

"Ummm, okay, I guess." said a confused Sasuke as he was not sure how to deal with Killer Bee being with him on his journey.

"Let me tell ya' something Sasuke, I have one hell of a new cd comin out ya' know, it will be so good, it will blow up and the horizon and always grow!" said Bee as he continued on his antics.

"Ugh, no wonder Naruto and this guy get along so well." thought Sasuke to himself as he and Bee left towards the location of Kirigakure.

Zaire was laying in the Sun-Braced Grove, one of the four locations on the outside of the city of Lazarus. The sun was shining over the grassy plains and beautiful pine wood forests as per usual.

"Huh, I wonder if that dude is awake yet, I did tie him down by the riverbank, it has been a while since I checked up on him, maybe I will cut off his dick or something, hehehehe." laughed the brutish Senju as he walked towards the woods to the west of the grassy plains.

"Hmmm, now where are you, I know I put you here somewhere you fuckin' cocksucker, but where?" asked Zaire as he searched the pine forest bank thoroughly.

"Aha, found you motherfucker, now, we can have some real damn fun." said Zaire as the unconcious Joakim was tied to a tree, with his destroyed hand laying beside him, with flies all around it.

"Don't worry none, I am just going to free you of this terrible thing we call skin, skin is a trap, for the real beauty of the human body is what lies within, that is when all humans have nothing to hide and can truly be honest with one another, that is my goal at least, to be in a world without...skin." said Zaire with no emotion as he created an ice pick out of wood and started to plan how he was going to skin Joakim alive.

In Kirigakure, several ANBU and hunter-nin were standing by the mist-covered riverbanks of the outside of the village, keeping watch in these relative times of peace. A few shinobi from other villages were also there, and they felt compelled to help Kirigakure continue to prosper in wealth.

"Anything unusual to report?" asked a man wearing a fish Anbu mask.

"No, not really, though I just became an ANBU not long ago." said a young man about five feet four inches tall with a Shark ANBU mask that was painted bright blue.

"Well, we are the two who have been assigned to watch over this post, so just keep your eyes open, even if nothing is to occur." said the older ANBU.

"Yes, Kazuma, I will." said the younger ANBU as he had a slingshot, and a katana painted black.

Around thirty minutes passed with no disturbances, until a crackle of wood could be heard in the distance, catching the attention of the two Kiri ANBU stationed there.

"Could that have been an animal?" asked the young, shark masked ANBU.

"I don't know, but keep your guard up." said Kazuma as he had a tanto of his own ready in the case of a combat situation.

"Hey, my o' fools, where in the blue moon is Mei Terumi, the Mizukage, I need to speak with here, yo' see, it is on the accusation that I want to murder he pretty little face." said Andarius as he emerged from the mist and stood in front of the two Anbu who were sitting on two posts on opposite ends of the Western gate of Kirigakure.

"That is a threat, whoever you are, we will not let you pass!" yelled Kazuma as he quickly ran towards Andarius with his Tanto and rammed it into the suit-clad man's heart.

"Way to break a man's heart my homie, I mean damn." said Andarius as he turned into a puddle of water.

"That was a Water Clone, damn, where could he be?" asked Kazuma to himself as the younger ANBU stood to his side covering him.

"Shit, Inari, behind you!" yelled Kazuma as Andarius thrusted his hand towards the fifteen year old boy's throat.

"Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!" yelled Inari as he created a large dragon made of the liquid substance to collide against Andarius at high velocity.

"Tsunami and Tazuna would be proud, I did not even know you could no that jutsu." said Kazuma with surprise.

"That was for Naruto and Kaiza, and I will not let you harm our Mizukage!" yelled Inari as he removed his ANBU mask and prepared to confront Andarius.

"Alright kid, if you want to fuck around, we can, but this is a mission of great importance, for I want this worthless fuckin' village to pay for it's crimes against me, dammit!" yelled Andarius as he stood about twenty feet away from Inari and prepared a few hand signs.

"I got this Inari, you just be careful." said Kazuma as he also started to create hand signs.

"Hidden Mist Jutsu!" said Andarius as the surrounding terrain became covered with the familiar sight of mist.

"Huh, I was going to use that exact jutsu." thought Kazuma to himself.

"Hey mothafucka, heads up, literally!" said Andarius as he summoned a Trident-like weapon covered in gold and crystal from a scroll in his left pocket.

"Yonareta: Beheading Maneuver!" yelled Andarius as he cut Kazuma's head clean off his shoulders.

"I will mimic the voice of this man to fool that child as well, this will be the true art of Silent Killing, which I have mastered far beyond those worthless Seven Shinobi Swordsman of the Mist, hehehe." laughed Andarius as his usual chill expression turned into one of blood-lust.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 019...-**


	19. Atrocious Man of Kirigakure

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 019: Atrocious Man of Kirigakure**

Andarius had beheaded Kazuma with his weapon, Yonareta, and with the help of the Hidden Mist Jutsu, he had his targets set on Inari as well.

"Kazuma, Kazuma are you alright, I thought I heard something?" asked Inari as he had his black painted sword in a striking stance.

"Time to fool this ol' dumb ass kid as well, I will mimic the voice of Kazuma and tell him to come near the sound, then off wit' his head." thought Andarius to himself with much excitement.

"Inari, I am alright, I am over here, around twenty feet to your right, that bastard got me, but I was able to fight him off for now, hurry and cover me before he gets back." said Andarius while using the voice of the now deceased Kazuma.

"Ummmm, okay, I will be right there Kazuma-sensei." said Inari who was oblivious to Andarius' ploy.

"That's it Inari, follow the sound of my voice, this jutsu will dissipate soon, we need to have each others backs when that happens." said Andarius trying to sound convincing.

"Okay, I am here." said Inari as he was still surrounded by Mist, with no sign of Kazuma anywhere.

Kazuma's head, being held by Andarius, suddenly appeared in front of Inari.

"What...no, noooooooo, Kazuma-sensei, no what did he do to you?" asked Inari as he started to cry at the sight of the severed head of his ANBU captain.

Andarius threw the severed head in the air and then proceeded to cut it horizontally in half.

"I will release the jutsu now, then I will kill ya lame ass ANBU as well." said Andarius as the Hidden Mist Jutsu was released.

Inari saw the headless body of Kazuma laying next to the destroyed head laying beside Andarius.

"You bastard, I will get you for this!" yelled Inari as he ran towards Andarius with his sword pointed towards the man.

"Yo' at first I impressed with how far you mist shinobi would go, but now, ya' just down below." said Andarius as he delivered a swift kick to Inari, breaking his right arm and sending him onto the ground.

"A'ight kid, no more games, I want the Mizukage, and well, you are not her!" said Andarius as he held his trident-like weapon above the boy and prepared to slam it down.

"Hiramekarei Release!" yelled a young man who instantly appeared behind Andarius and swung a large hammer rapped in bandages and powered by glowing blue chakra.

"What the..." said Andarius as he was struck by the weapon and was sent flying into the marsh thirty feet to the west of the ANBU outpost.

"Inari, get out of here, we can mourn Kazuma's death later." said Chojuro as he looked over at the pond that he knocked the perpetrator into.

A puddle of water behind Chojuro suddenly spawned the body of Andarius as he was quick to strike from behind the Shinobi Swordsman.

"Not bad, but you will pay for what you did to Kazuma." said Chojuro as he ducked below the weapon of Andarius and lunged Hiramekarei towards Andarius again, knocking him against a large rock this time.

"Fuck, he scored two hits with that fuckin' hammer, who the fuck are you?" asked Andarius as he was slow to get up.

"I am Chojuro, bodyguard of the Fifth Mizukage, and lead captain of the Kirigakure ANBU." said Chojuro who stood in front of Andarius defiantly.

"Oh, bodyguard of Mei eh, good, after I finish killing you, her pretty face will be next." said Andarius as he prepared a series of hand signs.

"I will switch Hiramekarei into the long sword form and strike at him from a distance." said Chojuro as he was anticipating Andarius' jutsu.

"Water Release: Three-Headed Hydra!" yelled Andarius as a large creature composed of water was made out of nothingness.

"So he can use the Water Release without a source, eh?" asked Chojuro as he still had Hiramekarei on the ready.

"I can create water with just my chakra alone, no need for an existing source, with this, I am on the same level as Kisame and Tobirama." said Andarius as he had the three headed creature made of water spiral towards Chojuro.

"This pressure from my jutsu will crush every damn bone in yo' body, there is no chance to survive." said Andarius as the large volume of the jutsu collided with Chojuro's Hiramekarei.

"Hiramekarei: Shield!" yelled Chojuro as his weapon formed a large plate and was able to shield him for the jutsu.

The water splashed at a high velocity and even manged to shatter Chojuro's weapon a good bit, before dissipating into a large pour of rain that covered the battlefield.

"Alright, that must have shaken him up." said Andarius as he ran at great speeds towards the location of Chojuro, who was still shaken up by the Three Headed Hydra Jutsu.

"Shit, I have no time to react, I must find a way." said Chojuro as he noticed that Inari had appeared in front of him in order to stand up to Andarius.

"Dammit Inari, I told you to leave, you will only get killed too." said Chojuro with anger.

"No, I was told a long time ago by a hero that running away and crying will never solve things, and now I will put that to test." said Inari as he drew his sword from his sheath and also ran towards Andarius.

"This is for Naruto." said Inari as he remembered the time when Naruto and his team helped fight off Gatou's thugs and the Demon of the Hidden Mist, Zabuza Momochi.

"The Golden Hero, eh?" said Andarius as his blue eyes lit up and were bloodshot, as he smiled with such force, one of his molars chipped slightly.

"Yonareta: Fish Spear!" yelled Andarius as a series of small hooks emerged from the man's weapon and pierced the arms and legs of Inari.

"GYAAAAHHH!" screamed Inari as he fell to the ground in great pain.

"Hehe...hahahaha, let's see what happens when I tug on this bait." said Andarius as he lured Inari back as if he was a fish, all the while more blood was gushing from Inari's wounds.

"You motherfucker!" yelled Chojuro as he swung the long sword variation of his weapon, cutting the wires attached to Andarius' hooks, and freeing Inari in the process.

"Come here, I will get you healed soon enough." said Chojuro as Inari passed out from the pain.

"I will not let some worthless member of the Seven Swordsmen get in my way!" yelled Andarius as he walked at a brisk pace towards Chojuro, and was preparing more hand signs.

"Perhaps, the Water Release: Homing Three-Headed Hydra Jutsu will be a better suit for your death." said Andarius with glee.

Elsewhere, as three in the evening of Naruto's third day on his journey came around, Zaire was in the process of flaying the now awake Joakim, as the injured Iwagakure Shinobi was crying out with immense pain.

"That's it, feel the peace as each tendon, each piece of skin is cut off from your body, and the joy as the ligaments are cut, thus allowing this prison we call skin to be freed from us." said Zaire with much joy as he carried out the act in the fruit tree-clad forest of the Sun-Braced Grove.

"Noooo, ughhhhhh...aaaa." screamed Joakim as Zaire was using a ice pick made of sharp wood to flay his victim.

"Only your head still has skin now, see, the beautiful red muscles, the remnants of the white ligaments, once I De-glove your head, I will give you the biggest kiss ever, because you will be free of the lie that is skin." said Zaire as a tear of joy fell from his right bloodshot eye.

Andarius had finished preparing the hand signs for his next jutsu as he unleashed it on Chojuro.

"Water Release: Homing Three-Headed Hydra!" yelled Andarius as the same jutsu from before was casted, except now it had the capability to continuously follow it's target.

"Judging by the name, I will have to use Hiramekarei to smash that liquid behemoth to puddles, or else it will continue to follow me until I am the victim." thought Chojuro to himself.

The large water-hydra closed in or Chojuro, and despite it's size, it was rather quick.

"Hiramekarei: Unleashed!" yelled Chojuro as he formed the hammer end of his blade and smashed it with all of his strength against the large water jutsu.

"Fuck, ugh..." murmured Chojuro as he was able to destroy the hydra, but the force of impact, as well as the pressure of the jutsu broke both of Chojuro's arms and destroyed his weapon.

"I can repair my bones and my blade in time, but Kazuma's death will never be forgivable." said Chojuro as he landed on the ground next to the unconscious Inari.

"Is that all the elite bodyguard of the Mizukage has to offer, oh well, time to kill the two of yo' mothafuckas now, in the name of His Majesty, The Apathetic Judge!" yelled Andarius as he swiftly ran towards the two shinobi and jumped in the air above them, with the intent of ramming Yonareta, the trident-like weapon, onto them both.

"Fuk off both of ya' dumb asses." said Andarius as he thought of what to do with the bodies once his wepons struck its targets.

"The only thing that will end prematurely is my marriage...wait, did I just say that...really?" went on a woman with long auburn hair as she delivered a swift and powerful kick to Andarius sending him to the ground, and also causing him to impale his own right leg on the weapon.

"Goddamn, fukin' bitch, that hurt, who do ya think ya are?" asked Andarius as he did not get a clear look of the attacker.

"Chojuro, Inari, I will handle this, I caught word from one of the ANBU who witnessed Kazuma's death, this time I will be the one to protect you." said the Fifth Mizukage as she stood in front of the two fallen Kirigakure shinobi and looked on at the injured Andarius.

"Well, I'll be damn, if it isn't Mei Terumi, the young woman who managed to overcome the Bloody Mist's graduation ritual." said Andarius as he pulled Yonareta out of his leg and stood up with a slight limp.

"Yes, and whoever you are, you will be dead shortly for what you did to us, you terrorist." said Mei with a valiant tone.

"Terroist, oh fuck, we are not terrorists, we are gods to this godless world, and anyone that calls the beautiful prince, and loving man, The Apathetic Judge's warriors terrorists deserves nothing short of death!" yelled Andarius in a fit of rage.

"Whatever, I don't have time for your radicalism methods." said Mei as she formed the hand signs for her own technique.

"Huh, I wonder what she will do, I will just have to counter with my own technique, and once I get the drop on her, I will have one of the five kages in Lazarus' possession." thought Andarius to himself.

"Lava Release: Melting Apparition Technique!" said Mei as she spat out a large wave of white-acidic lava that closed in on Andarius' location.

"Oh shit, the injury in my leg is too much, I cannot get out of way in time, I guess I will just have to sacrifice my right arm." said Andarius as he managed to mostly get out of the vicinity of Mei's jutsu, but his arm was caught by the acidic lava.

"Fuck, fuck that hurts, damn!" yelled Andarius as the skin and muscle on his right arm dissolved.

"Seems that your price for killing one of our own is starting to effect you more now." said Mei as she jumped off of the tree where she stood and slowly walked towards Andarius.

"Heh, well if this is the price to pay for getting back at the village that made me and many others suffer, then I will actively pursue it's destruction, even if only my head remains, though because of the kind and merciful nature of the Apathetic Judge, I will not be missing my right arm for too long." said Andarius in a calm manner towards Mei.

"You are from this village, huh, I don't remember seeing you, from what time did you defect and become a worthless criminal?" asked Mei with a serious tone.

"When you're worthless Yagura, the Fourth Mizukage, was enslaved by Tobi, or rather Obito Uchiha, hehehe, after that, and the fact that Obito had my brother and parents murdered, the whole Bloody Mist thing drove me to hell." said Andarius as he tightly gripped what little remained of his right arm and tore it off.

"We have all suffered, it took me seven years to undo the damage done by that Obito bastard and his Sharingan, and besides, the Bloody Mist was actually an object of times well before the Uchiha got to us, our village was like this since the days of the First Mizukage, Obito just made the circumstances worst." said Mei with a grimace.

"Thanks for the history lesson, but I am not complaining or nothing, after all, it's funny that the current Mizukage has two Kekkei Genkai, when thirteen years ago, any one with a Kekkei Genkai was executed brutally." said Andarius with anger in his voice.

"I was sure to execute any of those evil bastards who murdered the innocents because of having a bloodline limit, and yet you still complain about the policies of the past, they are done, our village is a peaceful one now, give it up!" yelled Mei to the disgruntled Andarius.

"Well, Haku of the Yuki clan was actually on our boss' radar for a while. ya' know we wanted him to be a member of the Knights of Dawn, with his Ice Release and all, but by the time Tetsuga came here to get the child, Zabuza Momochi already got to him." said Andarius.

"Moving on, Kisame was also on our radar, but he had formed an alliance with Obito and joined Akatsuki, so in short, all of the valiant shinobi from this village are already dead, what a fuckin' pity." said Andarius as pulled out a small vial of glowing blue liquid from his back pants pocket.

"Again, I had no way to protect Haku or his family back then, and Kisame was a rogue from the start, again a product of the Bloody Mist, anyway, are you finished ranting about archaic methods of the past?" asked Mei as she started to prepare more handsigns.

"Well, ya' see, the Apathetic Judge, this sweet beautiful prince who saved me and gave me a second chance, his compassion has no bounds, he even invented a liquid medicine for his soldiers should they suffer an injury such as mine, and because of his compassion, his soldiers can fight on for eternity!" said Andarius with a smile as he poured the vial of blue liquid on the stump where his right arm used to be.

"What?" asked Mei as the bones, nerves, muscle, and skin of Andarius' right arm all grew back.

"See, it as if it never happened, though I no longer have any more of this medicine left, so next time I loose a limb, it is for good." said Andarius with a mocking tone.

"Okay, we will put that claim to the test then, but first may I get your name before I melt you?" asked Mei.

"Andarius, Andarius Reiko." said the man with a smile.

"Okay Andarius Reiko, I will enjoy seeing you melt into a bloody mesh, Boil Release: Skilled Mist Technique!" said Mei as she started to spew steam from her mouth.

"Oh shit, this is bad, the second Kekkei Genkai of Mei, oh well, I may not have two, but I do have a responce." said Andarius as he quickly formed some more hand signs to counter.

"Brine Release: Protective Sphere of Atlantis!" said Andarius as Mei's eyes widened.

"What, what did he just do?" asked the Mizukage as a large orca, made of greenish-blue steaming water surrounded Andarius, shielding him from the Boil Release jutsu.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 020...-**


	20. Welcome to the Land of Roses

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 020: Welcome to the Land of Roses**

Andarius stood in the center of the Brine Release: Protective Shield of Atlantis Jutsu, shielding him from Mei's Boil Release technique.

"It looks like some kind of orca or dolphin, surely he does not plan to defend against my Skilled Mist Technique with something like that." thought Mei to herself as she increased the PH level of the jutsu to start corroding the outside of Andariu's aquatic shield.

"I am sorry to tell ya' this my friend, but wit' this jutsu, your kekkei genkai is not going to harm me." said Andarius as the large orca made of green-like mineral water started to produce steam of its own, further multiplying the near by temperature.

"If he thinks that he is safe in that stationary water dome, he is mistaken." said Mei as she performed more hand signs and used the Lava Release: Melting Apparition Technique to shoot large acidic mounds of Lava atop Andarius' jutsu.

"What is she up to now, heh, Brine Release: Countering Sword of Atlantis!" yelled Andarius as the sphere that surrounded him produced a large cutlass sword made of scalding green water, which dissolved Mei's jutsu and came very close to hitting her as well.

"My lava, it was eaten up by water, but how?" thought Mei to herself as she gained some distance between herself and Andarius to plan her next move.

"You don't want it to get too hot, now do ya', those two over there might not like it." said Andarius as he pointed to Inari and Chojuro who were barely outside of the PH levels of the Boil Release Jutsu.

"Shit, I will have to lower it, so they don't get hurt." said Mei to herself as she started to cool down the surrounding area.

"Face it girl, you cannot win with what you have presented here, Brine Release: Charging Orca of the Pacific!" yelled Andarius as the Sphere of green-scalding water he was in morphed into a larger orca and started to swim at great speeds atop the wet and misty grounds of the surrounding area, approaching Mei.

"Brine Release, I never heard of it, but it seems to revolve around a complete change in the texture and effects of a standard Water Release jutsu." thought Mei to herself as she was able to narrowly dodge the first attempt of Andarius' jutsu to ram directly into her.

"Hehehehe, you were lucky that time Mei, but now, I will multiply the amount of orcas into four, you will not escape this time!" yelled Andarius as the orca made of his Brine Release water turned around and separated into four different parts of equally sized orcas.

"Lava Release: Skilled Behemoth Apparition!" yelled Mei in a last ditch effort as she spat out a large quantity of white, acidic lava-like substance that formed into a large otter-like creature.

"Hehehe, so, you are combining the best of both of your abilities, not bad, the Lava and Boil release jutsu used in one, but will the effects be any different?" asked Andarius as he and the other three orcas charged once again towards Mei.

"Like I will just stand here, my Skilled Behemoth Apparition with destroy all four of those aquatic spheres." thought Mei to herself.

"Now!" yelled Andarius as he released his jutsu, causing Mei's jutsu to also be cancelled out, and quickly ran over to her location.

"So, that whole jutsu was just a feint, to try and lure me into an ambush, well it did not work, I am the Mizukage after all, this is the village that gave birth to the art of ambush." said Mei as she pulled a sharp kunai out of her pocket and thrusted the tool towards Andarius' face.

"I know, the art of ambush runs well in these veins, honey!" said Andarius as he parried back out of the reach of Mei's kunai and prepared a few more hand signs in rapid succession.

"Damn, is this another one of his feints?" asked Mei as she tried to prepare more handsigns for another Boil Release Jutsu.

"Too late, Brine Release: Crushing Hand of Poseidon!" yelled Andarius as a large scalding mineral-green hand of water erupted out of the ground and rapidly lunged towards Mei, catching her before she could finish her own jutsu, and began to burn her.

"Hehehehe, the effects of the Brine Release are similar to your own Boil Release in terms of pain inducement." said Andarius as he stood next to the large construct of Brine and stared at the captured Mizukage in the eyes.

"You will be the first to die, and then I will own this fuckin' village." said Andarius with a malevolent grin.

Night approached Naruto and his team as the third day of their journey to Lazarus was reaching it's end.

"We have made it passed the Land of Roses border, and should be in Ishigakure by tomorrow afternoon at the latest, after that, it should not take us too long to get to the border of the Land of Earth and reach the destination in that scroll." said Shikamaru as he sat beside a fire place with a cigarette, reading one of Jiraiya's old novels.

"Good to know, it seems we have not had any more trouble ever since Sakura was able to fight off that old geezer's jutsu, so we should have a smooth ride to Ishigakure." said Sai as he finished drawing a picture of Ino beside a Camellia.

"I don't know, that old man seemed like he would not be the type to just retreat and never bite back, we have to be careful in the event of another attack from these guys, maybe next time, all three of those men could show up." said Sakura with concern.

"Man, it is about time we close in on Ishigakure, I know it has only been three days, yet it seems like an eternity to me." said Naruto as he was about to fall asleep leaning on a tree.

"Just be a little more patient, and keep any troubled thoughts out of your mind, we will find out what those bastards really want soon." said Shikamaru as he was reading through various strategies that he had written himself on traversing long distances, having finished the Icha Icha Tactics novel.

"Heh, those books you wrote about traveling have been selling well in the Konoha Library, and it would seem for good reason." said Sai reading through one of them as well, having finished his picture.

"I would read one of them too, but to hear an order from Shikamaru directly would be more efficient for me." said Naruto as he drifted asleep and laid against the tree seemingly peaceful.

"He really was worn out, I think most of his tiredness comes from the mental stress of being married as well." said Sai with joy.

"Yeah, he sure has a lot on his shoulders, I mean, look at how far he has came." said Shikamaru.

"Maybe so, but also look at all of the freaks that have tried to hurt Naruto and the rest of us, all because of what Naruto had sealed inside of him, and now it is because someone is his biggest fan, I will personally deal with this boss myself, mark my words, there is no reason for Naruto to bear this burden alone." said Naruto as she stood up with a grin on her face and a look of fire in her emerald green eyes as she clenched her fists and thought of her teacher, Tsunade.

"Man, Sakura has been on fire this mission, no wonder the village is considering her for Jonin Commander, too bad you already have the position, eh Shikamaru?" asked Sai who was impressed with Sakura's resolve as of late.

"Well, she could be our motivational speaker, that is for sure, but I am going to rest for a while, you two be sure to get some sleep as well." said Shikamaru as he fell asleep reading one of his own books.

"I will keep watch for a while, then we can all sleep through the night." said Sai.

"Agreed." said Sakura as she had too much energy currently to lay down.

Andarius held Mei in his Brine Release jutsu as she was screaming due to the scalding water that was brushing against her skin.

"Ahhghhhhhh!" screamed Mei as she tried to break free but was unable to slip out of the jutsu.

"It would seem the rest of Kirigakure assumed you would be victorious, there appears to be no help for you in the horizon, and with nightfall, no one will be missing you or these other two low lifes." said Andarius as his jutsu gripped Mei even tighter, causing many skin burns to appear all over her, and burning away some of her clothes.

"Ahhghhhhhhhhhhh!" yelled Mei as he skin started to turn red and boils were beginning to appear all over her body.

"Yaahahahhhhhhh!" yelled Andarius in response as he strengthened the jutsu further, planning on boiling Mei into a pile of mushed bones.

"Lariat!" yelled a voice from directly behind Andarius as he was slow to turn around when Killer Bee clothes-lined him directly into the lake nearby.

"Susanoo." said Sasuke as one of his Susanoo's hands grabbed Mei and brought her down to safety.

"That .teji..whatever the hell it is called came in handy after all." said Killer Bee as Gyuki facepalmed again within the man's consciousness.

"Mizukage, just rest here for a while." said Sasuke as he laid the injured shinobi on the ground.

"Bee, get those other two Mist shinobi and lay them next to the Mizukage, so that way they will not be caught in the crossfire." said Sasuke.

"Alright, they will be safe as can be, things will be so calm, they will be able to breathe, o'yeah!" yelled Bee as he produced the tentacles of Gyuki and grabbed Inari and Chojuro and quickly placed them beside Mei.

"It seems we were slightly late, someone was already killed here, and those other two shinobi are also critically wounded." said Sasuke as his Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan and Rinnegan focused on the lake where Andarius was launched.

"I got that bastard with the Lariat, but who know what he is doing now, fool, ya, fool." said Bee as he pulled out Samehada in case of a retaliation.

"Susanoo, prepare yourself." said Sasuke as the skeletal Susanoo grew into the complete form without the Armour.

"Water Release: Six-Headed Tyrant Leviathan Homing Evangeleon!" yelled a slightly shaken Andarius as six large serpentine heads of water formed out of the lake and split up, with the two sets of three aiming for Bee and Sasuke respectively.

"This should be a good diversion, I will just try to kill Mei, and at the same time avoid being bested by these two fuckers." said Andarius as he was bleeding from the chest where he was caught by Bee's Lariat.

"Heh, petty jutsu, Susanoo, destroy this!" yelled Sasuke as his Susanoo grew two extra arms and smashed the three water serpents that approached him.

"Hey Eight-O, give me a hand-o, oh yeah!" said Bee as he formed a protective covering of tentacles that shielded him from the impact of the three water serpents that also attacked him.

"Fuck, that did not do as much as I would have liked, c'mon Dreatoen, where the fuck are you?" thought Andarius to himself as he emerged from the lake, holding his chest and seeming to be under great stress.

"So, you are another one of those losers who are after Naruto Uzumaki, Knights of Dawn, working for the Apathetic Judge, right?" asked Sasuke as he recalled back to what Orochimaru told him.

"Heh, I don't know how in the fuck ya' know that but hear me out now you two fuckin' bitches, I am not afraid of either of you, I don't give a fuck who ya' think ya' are, nor do I give a fuck about any of this shit, don't expect me to be intimidated by pussies like you two!" yelled Andarius with a smile of much adrenaline and anger.

"If you are finished ranting like a child, then we will be obliged to kill you now." said Sasuke as Bee quickly darted towards Andarius.

"Not enough time to use the Brine Release." thought Andarius to himself.

"Lightning Straight!" yelled Bee as he created a vortex of lightning around his body and charged directly into Andarius.

"Shit, fuc...k." said Andarius as he was knocked into the air and was unable to move.

"Chidori!" yelled Sasuke as he pierced Andarius' heart with his hand and pushed the injured Knight of Dawn to the ground.

"Since he was still wet from being knocked into the lake, those two Lightning-based attacks were even further lethal." said Sasuke as he and Bee turned to mend the wounds of Mei, Chojuro, and Inari.

"Nice work on the Water Clone." said Andarius, who was running low on chakra from using the Brine Release with such intensity.

"Well, it seems are friend is still amongst us, he cannot have much energy left though." said Sasuke as Mei, Chojuro, and Inari rose to their feet.

"Sakura made these herbs, they are fast acting, and can heal just about any type of injury." said Sasuke to Mei.

"You were the one who saved us, uhh, I..." said Mei as she remembered back when Sasuke attacked the Kage Summit.

"Sasuke, you mean the Sasuke that helped fight off Gatou's thugs all of those years ago." said Inari with joy.

"Huh, I guess these people know you, but we have a friend over here who is probably blue, fool, ya fool." said Bee as Andarius slowly lingered towards their location.

"Seriously Dreatoen, any fuckin' time now, I am too tired to fight all five of these fuckers." said Andarius who was surprised to see Inari, Chojuro, and Mei stand up again.

"That bitch should have been roasted, I guess those two fuckers had some kind of ointment or medicine." thought Andarius as he kept his distance from Sasuke and Killer Bee.

"I will use Amaterasu and finish this now." said Sasuke as he surrounded his sword with the black flames and ran towards Andarius at great speeds.

"Water Release: Two-Headed Water Dragon!" yelled Andarius with desperation as Sasuke easily side-stepped the two large aquatic bullets and jumped right in front of Andarius, lunging the black-flame sword towards the man.

Before Sasuke could connect his attack, he struck what appeared to be an invisible wall, resembling a glass mirror of sorts, protecting Andarius from the attack.

"What the fuck is this?" thought Sasuke as he shot more of the black flames at Andarius, only for them to hit this mirror-like wall again.

"What is this, another jutsu of this Andarius?" asked Mei to herself.

"Lady Mizukage, sorry for falling on the job." said Chojuro as he bowed to Mei.

"I was also beaten, in other words, I failed my people." said Mei as Chojuro appeared to be saddened from this statement.

"I told you Andarius not to venture out alone, but since you disobeyed that command, you shall be punished for it." said Dreatoen as he appeared in the air above Andarius and landed next to him.

"Who the heck is that?" asked Inari with confusion.

"Mothafucka, the Apathetic Judge told me I could do this, I was entrusted to kill the Mizukage, but thanks to Jesei and those others, these fucks here must have been notified and spoiled my plans." said Andarius with anger.

"Hey, relax Andarius, we do not need to kill Mei, but I do want to test Sasuke's compassion though." said Dreatoen as he created a sharp shard of crystal and shot it with his eyes glowing yellow, towards Inari, and before anyone could react, the young man was pierced from the neck, and fell to the ground, unable to let out a sound.

"Inari, no!" yelled Mei as tears started to fall from her face.

"Fuck, this is bad." said Chojuro.

"Good work Ishi, it seems Yonareta helped you out as well." said Dreatoen speaking of the swords that all of the Knights of Dawn had in their scrolls.

"No, I will not let this go on!" yelled Sasuke as his Susanoo formed into a fully stabilized form, standing miles above Dreatoen and Andarius.  
 **  
-To be continued next time with Chapter 021...-**


	21. Sending a Message

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 021: Sending a Message**

Dreatoen had pierced Inari's neck with a crystal shard spawned by his sword, which he called Ishi.

"Yet another person, you could have saved." said Dreatoen as he landed beside Andarius, looking at Sasuke and Killer Bee with a serious demeanor.

"I will crush you for what you did to this boy here!" said Sasuke as he stood atop the perfect stabilized Susanoo, which towered over Dreatoen and Andarius.

"And yet you tried to do the same thing, if I recall, you said that you wanted to kill every last person in the Hidden Leaf, even down to the last child, and just because you were defeated by the great and exalted Naruto Uzumaki, you think yourself to now be a hero?" asked Dreatoen as he surrounded himself and Andarius with a protective shield, glowing green and resembling static electricity.

"Running away will get you nowhere." said Sasuke as his Susanoo lunged it's giant foot on top of Dreatoen's barrier, and slammed its foot onto the location, creating a large shockwave.

"Damn this is hard, maybe if I ever piss him off, I can sing the songs of a bard, fool, ya fool." said Bee in amazement.

"No, Inari, we have to get him to a medic as quick as possible." said Chojuro who held the unconscious young ANBU in his hands.

"I will heal him as soon as I kill these two wretches." said Sasuke as he released the Susanoo and landed beside Chojuro and Inari.

"You are a medical ninja?" asked Mei.

"No, but my wife is the finest medic in the world, her name is Sakura Haruno, and she gave these herbs, the same ones I healed you with earlier, although I may need to give him a larger dosage to fix the wound." said Sasuke.

"Yo, Sasuke, those fools are untouched, it seeks they really do have a lot of luck." said Bee as he noticed Dreatoen and Andarius on the other side of the lake, and a large crater being where they formerly stood.

"I am not sure how you got out of that attack, but if you stick around for a bit, I will make you pay for this child's injury." said Sasuke to Dreatoen and Andarius as he gave Inari some pills and forced them down his throat.

"Hey, what are you doing, won't this hurt him?" asked Mei with concern.

"No, it is the only way, trust me." said Sasuke as Inari swallowed the pills and remained silent.

"He will be fine soon, but for now, you two get him to a hospital, me and Bee will deal with these two Knights of Dawn, and afterwards I will speak to you about the manner of the threat that these guys possess." said Sasuke to the Mizukage as he directed his attention towards Dreatoen and Andarius.

"Hey man, although Mei is still alive, I was able to send a message anyway, not to trifle with the likes of us, but now, these mothafuckas are here, what is the best thing to do now?" asked Andarius.

"Nothing, we do not need to do anything, your problems with this village are entirely trivial, and those two men over there are not Naruto, who if I remember correctly, is the only thing that we are to care about, according to our majesty." said Dreatoen with a dry sense of humor as he put his hand on Andarius' shoulder.

"So, we leavin', what about those two, if we do kill them now, it will be less trouble for us in the future." said Andarius who was still livid over being interrupted in his chance to kill Mei.

"Those two are no trouble, nothing is any trouble, the only trouble is when someone like you is given too much free time, and decides to invade a village all alone, without thinking that backup forces could show up." said Dreatoen sternly to Andarius as the two prepared to teleport back to Lazarus, via Dreatoen's mysterious jutsu.

"Leaving now, I guess you Knights of Dawn are real cowards after all." said Sasuke in a taunting manner.

"I don't know Sasuke, why not ask Orochimaru, once I kill him and Taka when they arrive at Lazarus." said Dreatoen with a smirk as he and Andarius teleported out of sight.

"How does he know about that?" thought Sasuke to himself with surprise.

"Hey Sasuke, should we follow those fools?" asked Bee.

"Not yet, we will go talk to Mei once she returns to her office, and then report back to the Leaf, and after that, find Naruto." said Sasuke as he and Bee walked towards Kirigakure as ten in the night ticked around.

Dreatoen and Andarius arrived in the southern side of Lazarus, after teleporting away from a confrontation with Sasuke and Killer Bee.

"It was foolish of you to do that, I expect it will not happen again!" said Dreatoen to Andarius as the two walked in the streets of Lazarus in the night, approaching the Castle of Leviticus.

"Damn dude, I already told ya' fucka, boss said I could undertake the fuckin' mission, if I died, I died in the name of Rah'Zuh." said Andarius with a stern tone.

"I just don't want to loose you." said Dreatoen as the two arrived at the castle doors.

"Yeah, I know dammit, but let me do my thing, and you do yours, I am going to bed." said Andarius as he entered the castle and headed towards the elevator.

"Once Naruto does arrive, I will be sure to have any others with him to be executed!" said Dreatoen to himself silently as he closed the large doors of the castle.

Jesei had arrived in Ishigakure, aware that Naruto, Sakura, Sai, and Shikamaru would also be there within the next fifteen hours, based on the information he knew of in the scroll.

"Not much life in this village, but the buildings and scenery is not too bad." said Jesei as a few townsfolk walked by Jesei minding their own business.

"I will wait by this small forest over here, I am sure to notice when Naruto approaches this area, and that Sakura too, I will kill her this time." said Jesei with much anticipation.

"Guess I will take a nap for now, nothing else to do." said Jesei as the wind blew in the night sky in the calm village of Ishigakure, which resembled a garden with marble buildings and roses planted all around the area.

Morning came about, as Naruto and his team had awoken around seven in the morning.

"I did not sense anyone spying on us during the night, I guess that old geezer is waiting elsewhere." said Naruto as he stood up and looked at the path of trees ahead of him.

"Nothing to report here, I am easily woken up if I here anything, it was as quiet as can be." said Sai.

"Well, that is good, today, we will arrive in Ishigakure, or the Hidden Village of Stones, not to be confused with Iwagakure though." said Shikamaru as he got all of his supplies ready,

"But, I do not see any stones around here, it should just be called the village hidden in the roses." said Naruto as he saw an entire heirloom of roses around him.

"It does not matter what it is called, let's just go, if that old freak is waiting for us at the village, then it will prove that this scroll you have is a trap." said Sakura to Naruto.

"No, I don't know about that, but I would like to understand this situation a little better, so come one everyone." said Naruto as he was getting more curious by the day to see who this man that wanted to meet him so badly was.

A few hours passed by as Naruto and his team walked on a cliff side surrounded by a lot of flora, and them made their way down through a valley that was surrounded by a few houses, but nothing stood out on their journey, until they were on the mountain that overlooked Ishigakure.

"Finally, we are here, I thought my legs were going to give out!" said Sai who was used to flying on his ink bird.

"Well, we did not want to be detected by that old man that attacked us." said Shikamaru to Sai.

"The only thing to do now is to head down there and see what awaits us, it could just be another checkpoint for all we know." said Naruto.

"After we leave here, we will be near the border of the Land of Earth, today is the fourth day of our mission as well, so that puts the time of our arrival at our final checkpoint at around seven days." said Sakura.

"That sounds about right." said Shikamaru as the four shinobi walked down the path that went down the mountain and closed in on Ishigakure.

"Huh, are they almost here?" asked Jesei to himself as he was sitting in a restaurant in Ishigakure, trying to blend in with the population.

"I am not the best sensor in the world, but Naruto's chakra is not hard to mistake, well, at their current rate of speed, it should take them another half an hour before they get here." said Jesei as he was going through his plan of attack in his mind.

Sasuke had finished giving his report to Mei, when Inari rushed in the room, and gave the Uchiha a big hug.

"I cannot believe you are already healed." said Mei as she was happy to see Inari healthy again.

"It is all thanks to Sasuke right here, he saved me, and he saved the village too, just like when he and Naruto saved our own town." said Inari.

"No, don't thank me, thank Naruto, he is the one who opened my eyes, besides, your friend Kazuma, I could not save him." said Sasuke with a saddened tone.

"Don't worry, as a shinobi we will find a way to deal with this loss." said Inari with a slightly saddened tone as well.

"I must go now, you five kages speak to each other on when this Kage Summit will commence, and once a date is established let the Hokage know, for that is where me and Bee are now headed, at least if nothing else occurs." said Sasuke as he and Bee left the Mizukage's office.

"So, when we get to the leaf, the Hokage will give us the brief?" asked Bee.

"Yes, Kakashi will by then have received a report from the other Kages on when a meeting about these Knights of Dawn will be held, but until then, we have to observe and make sure there are no more of those soldiers in the Land of Fire." said Sasuke to Bee as the two headed towards a boat that would take them to Konohagakure.

"Why don't you just use that eye of yours to teleport us across the sea again?" asked Bee.

"I want to save as much chakra as possible, plus it will take a while before the Kages can come up with a meeting date, so let's just wait this out for a bit." said Sasuke as he and Bee got on a small boat and sailed out towards the Land of Fire's port town.

Orochimaru and Taka had arrived in a location several miles outside of Ishigakure, as Orochimaru wanted to take his own route to Lazarus.

"All of these roses are making me sick, when the hell are we going to arrive in this Lazarus city anyway?" asked Suigetsu with an annoyed tone.

"Quit being a damn drama queen Suigetsu, we have already came far right now, let Orochimaru handle this, he seems to know more than we do about this Lazarus place anyhow." said Karin to Suigetsu as she was tired of hearing him complain the entire journey.

"Maybe I should have just left them at home, except Jugo, he is being curtious, but oh well, too late now." said Orochimaru as he sat alone in a tree and looked over a scroll that he brought with him.

"This scroll has some chakra from Ryuchi Cave stored in it, Kabuto must have forgotten to take it with him back when he was allied with Obito during the war." said Orochimaru thinking of when he first discovered the scroll.

"It will definatley come in handy for when we approach Lazarus." said Orochimaru as Karin approached him.

"Umm, Lord Orochimaru, if you don't mind me asking, who is this man we are going to see?" asked Karin with curiosity.

"Hehe, so you are getting curious now, all you need to know is that he is after Naruto Uzumaki, and he is also a threat to us as well, let that satisfy you for now, once we reach Lazarus, you can see him for yourself." said Orochimaru to Karin.

"Cryptic as usual." said Karin to herself.

"Sir, I sense Naruto's chakra in the village about fifty miles east of here." said Jugo to Orochimaru.

"Okay, he is doing fine as well, good." said Orochimaru to himself as he prepared to continue on his own path to Lazarus.

Naruto and his team were outside of the village of Ishigakure as they approached the signpost on the city limits.

"We made it, not a bad looking town to say the least." said Shikamaru.

"I guess so, but I will be glad once this whole ordeal is over." said Sai as he had a strange feeling in his mind.

"Cheer up dammit, and you all called me a lovebird, hahahaha." laughed Naruto as he knew that Sai missed Ino.

"Alright Naruto, we will explore this village, and if we do not find anything, we will continue on the path in that scroll you have." said Shikamaru to Naruto and the others.

"Sounds like a plan to me, let's go." said Sakura with excitement as she was eager to explore the village to see what she could find.

Jesei could see the four man team from outside the window of the restaurant he was in.

"Whoah, here they are, at long last, I will try to corner Sakura while she is alone, that should be all I need to make my move." thought Jesei to himself as he quietly got up out of his chair and walked towards the back room of the restaurant.

"I am keeping my chakra as low as possible, no one should find me." thought Jesei as he pulled out a tobacco pipe and relaxed in the back room for a while, waiting for the right moment to enact his plan to test Sakura's capabilities.

"The boss sure seemed interested in all three members of Team Seven, and for good reason, they were the ones who sealed the dreaded Kaguya away, I must be careful when dealing with here, oh boy." said Jesei to himself as he began to get a little nervous.

"Who would have thought, I am not worried about facing Sakura, but something else is making me feel at worry, what the fuck could it be?" asked Jesei to himself as he held his left hand to his forehead as he was breathing heavily.

"It has been so long since I was in a battle with someone else, but is that the reason, or is it... no that cannot be it!" said Jesei as he put down the pipe and seemed to be in a frantic rush.

"I must kill this girl now, I cannot bear the thought of my beautiful sweet majesty being alone anymore!" said Jesei thinking of something very troublesome as he ran out of the back of the restaurant with his chakra suppressed, with the intent of killing Sakura using stealth tactics.

"Huh, did I hear something?" asked Sakura to herself as he was slowly walking through Ishigakure on her own looking at the sights and scenery of the town.

"I hope there is nothing waiting in the shadows, for if there is, I will vanquish it." thought Sakura to herself as her gut feeling was making her feel uneasy.

"I was right!" said Sakura as she ducked, avoiding be cut by Jesei's sword, as the old man appeared right behind her with great speed.

"Come on, trying a sneak attack like that?" asked Sakura as she was happy to be face to face with the real Jesei.

"I did not tell you my name before, my name is Jesei Leikough, servant and member of his Majesties Sacred Knights of Dawn, prepare to be sent to Hell you heathen!" said Jesei as he stared at Sakura with a dangerous intent.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 022...-**


	22. Jesei vs Sakura

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 022: Jesei vs. Sakura**

Jesei had attempted to execute Sakura with a surprise attack, but she was able to duck and avoid Jesei's weapon.

"A sneak attack, are you scared of me from the last time we fought?" asked Sakura with a taunting tone.

"No my dear, I was just making sure to carry out my mission as quickly and quietly as possible." said Jesei.

The townsfolk of Ishigakure ran into the houses and behind the trees nearby, as they were startled by the sudden confrontation.

"My name is Jesei Leikough, one of his Majesty's Sacred Knights of Dawn, and the one who will be your judge." said Jesei as he lifted his sword with both hands in an offensive stance.

"Huh, the clone did clone did not have a weapon, I guess there are some abilities he kept absent in order to have a few tricks hidden up his sleeve." thought Sakura to herself.

"I was right, the old geezer was here after all, hiding amongst the rest of these villagers." said Naruto as he was easily able to find Sakura's location in the wide open streets.

"Naruto found us, I expected as much, but how will Sakura handle this?" thought Jesei to himself.

"Naruto, we heard the commotion of the towns people, it would appear Sakura was the first one to be targeted again." said Sai as he homed in on Sakura's location with his ink bird.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu, success." said Shikamaru with a quiet tone as he was hidden behind one of the buildings along with some of the townsfolk who were hiding from the commotion.

"Good job Shikamaru, now we can take this guy, and question him about the validity of this scroll's contents." said Naruto with a optimistic tone.

"Fuck, this is not what I wanted to happen, eh, shit happens, oh well." said Jesei as he closed his eyes and prepared a few hand signs.

"You are not going to do anything!" yelled Sakura as she ran and jumped in the air, with her right arm, surrounded by the Chakra Enhanced Strength, ready to strike.

"Shannarroooo!" yelled Sakura as her fist directly made contact with Jesei, sending the man into the ground with a large impact.

"What was that, an explosion?" asked one of the elderly townsfolk.

"Nice work Shikamaru, he could not activate his jutsu in time." said Sakura as she stared at Jesei's immobilized body laying in a crater.

"That was some nice work Sakura, but I am sensing something more prevalent around, I will see to it." said Naruto to Sakura.

"My creed is to face Sakura alone in this battle, though if you wish to go against those orders, Naruto, then we can bring more numbers to this village, which would result in civilian casualties, am I right?" asked Jesei as he emerged from the opposite end of the street, seemingly crawling out of the ground.

"Huh, this body is disappearing, as if it was some kind of genjutsu, or a mirage." said Sakura as she stepped out of the crater.

"Really, so you wish to use this kind of threatening bullshit to try and stop us from finishing this quick, well unfortunate for you that I can go from one to one hundred thousand in a handsign." said Naruto as he activated his Sage Mode.

"Well now, it seems things are going to get a little ugly." said Sai.

"They sure are." said Lunesto as he suddenly appeared behind Sai, and lunged his sword towards the leaf shinobi's face.

"Ninja Art: Super Beast Extermination!" yelled Sai as he was able to narrowly dodge Lunesto's attack and create a large pair of ancient warriors drawn from his ink to attack the new intruder.

"Another one, and he is also one of those three men from the time in the village." said Naruto as he walked towards Sai's location.

"Shikamaru, you help Sakura against that old man, I will assist Sai here." said Naruto as he, with Sage Mode active, ran towards Lunesto with high speed.

"Heh, Lunesto must have requested our boss to send him with the Instant Teleportation Transfixation Jutsu." thought Jesei to himself as he focused on Sakura and Shikamaru.

"I was hoping to face you alone in this duel Sakura, but I guess it cannot be helped. although I do presume that the other boy over there will just try to trap me with the Naara clan jutsu again." said Jesei as he released his jutsu and decided to wait for Sakura to make a move.

Naruto had thrown his left hand, clenched into a fist, right at Lunesto, however the young Knight had managed to dodge it at the last second.

"I get to face the wonderful Golden Hero in battle, this is so awesome!" thought Lunesto to himself.

"Heh, you may have dodged my punch, but nature's punch is about to strike." said Naruto referring to the Frog Katas.

"The hell are you talking abou..." said Lunesto as he was hit with nature energy in the face and was sent flying into a nearby building, causing the citizens to run off in fear.

"That was what I was talking about." said Naruto as Sai got his bearings and stood to his feet.

"Ouch, fuck, I forgot all about that." said Lunesto as some sort of second skin made of glass cracked off his face, where he was hit by the nature energy.

"Huh, so he had some sort of contingency plan in place, this one is like Gaara's sand amour." said Naruto.

"It seems that we were separated from Sakura and Shikamaru as well, I guess that is what this guy wanted to do all along." said Sai.

"My name is Lunesto Amire, and I am the beautiful one of eight Knights of Dawn under his Majesty's service." said Lunesto with an elegant pose as he put his hands on his hips.

"Alright Lunesto, instead of posing, you should watch out above you." said Naruto as a clone with a Rasengan was about to strike Lunesto.

"Aww, come on, you got to give me some time to pose!" yelled Lunesto with an upset expression as he dodged the attack and prepared some handsigns.

"Kurama, let's go!" said Naruto as he entered the first stage of the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.

"Bat Symphony of the Garden Technique!" said Lunesto as several fruit bats were summoned from the ground and all gathered around himself.

"Hey, it's that golden form again, to see it a second time is a dream come true." said Lunesto as he marveled at Naruto's form.

Jesei had taken the initiative against Sakura, running towards her, with his sword in tow.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu!" said Shikamaru as he tried to capture Jesei with his shadow binding, but found that there was too much sunshine in the streets to do so.

"Heh, the Naara clan member is no threat for now, Kommittomentto: Absalon Vineyard!" said Jesei as his sword started to glow with a blueish light and surrounded himself and Sakura with thick vines and red berries, roughly thirty feet in width and length.

"Trying to trap me again, but this time it will be your downfall Jesei." said Sakura as she jumped in the air and raised her leg, and proceeded to perfrom a dropkick on the old man.

"Cherry Blossom Impact!" yelled Sakura as he left leg slammed onto Jesei's sword, which produced vines that pricked Sakura's leg.

"Damn, he got me, but why did my Chakra not destroy the sword?" asked Sakura to herself.

"What the hell did that old man do, Sakura is surrounded by overgrown vines and fruit, and it appeared to be the effects of his sword." thought Shikamaru to himself as he was analyzing the situation with much pace.

"I am sorry to tell you this my dear, but Kommittomentto, the name of my sacred blade of Rah'Zuh, can produce the sacred vines of his majesty's garden to protect me from most forms of physical attacks." said Jesei with a smirk on his face.

"Is that so, well thanks for the heads up!" yelled Sakura as she punched the ground below her, causing it to cave in, and Jesei began to loose his balance.

"Whoah shit, this is not good." thought Jesei to himself as Sakura, holding a kunai, ran towards Jesei and collided her weapon with Jesei's sword.

"An old fashioned dance with weapons, I will be happy to olbige Sakura." said Jesei as he held his sword against Sakura's Kunai, trying to force his blade to strike the kunoichi.

"Fuck!" said Jesei as Sakura used her chakra control to boost her strength again and pierce Jesei in the left leg.

"Now, take this!" yelled Sakura as he punched Jesei in the face, sending him through the large vines he had created earlier.

"Hehe, that Sakura, she is a true powerhouse." thought Shikamaru to himself with a fearful expression.

"Sorry Sakura, this is another Mirage clone." said Jesei as the real one appeared on top of a two story building behind Sakura.

"Mirage clone, what the hell does he mean, a genjutsu, or something else?" said Sakura.

"It is due to my Mind Release, even your husband could not kill me directly when we fought." said Jesei as he prepared a few handsigns to counterattack.

"So he and Sasuke did fight during the invasion, eh." said Sakura as she prepared for Jesei's jutsu to activate.

"Mind Release: Spiritual Guidance Totem Pole!" said Jesei as a large totem pole emerged from the building he was standing on, as Jesei stood a top the large, twenty foot construction.

A Blue barrier surrounded the old Knight, as many blue orbs also surrounded the totem pole, as Jesei sat down on the top of the pole and focused his chakra.

"Mind Release is the pinnacle of human critical thinking, and the common thought, with my enhanced cognitive perceptions, you will come to see why my master sent me to confront you specifically." said Jesei as the totem pole started to slowly rotate.

"With each rotation, these blue orbs will come after you, be careful, should you be hit by one, and the effects could be unpleasant." said Jesei as a blue orb was launched towards Sakura's location.

"The hell is this, must be part of this jutsu, but no time to get surprised now!" yelled Sakura as she was able to dodge the jutsu.

"It never stops pursuing it's target, hehehe." laughed Jesei as another orb was launched at Sakura, as well as the first one coming back to try and hit her again.

"I see what you are trying to do, but let me show you what a fully mastered Medical Ninja can do." said Sakura as he dodged both orbs and ran towards Jesei.

"Time to launch a third orb, and the other two will also continue to home in on their target." said Jesei as another blue orb was shot from the top mouth of the three-faced totem pole that was created from Jesei's jutsu.

"Three of them now, if I cannot find a way to strike this man down, I will be too distracted to fight effectively." said Sakura to herself as she punched to totem pole with all of her might.

"Huh?" asked Sakura to herself as one of the blue orbs behind her had gone directly through her chest, like a fire ball.

"I tried to tell you Sakura, don't rush in so foolishly, that is not what true Medical Ninja is supposed to do." said Jesei as the four orbs that his jutsu had so far spawned all circled around him.

"Target down." said Jesei as he smiled with confidence.

"Sakura, shit, she got hit by that damn jutsu!" said Shikamaru with a worried tone.

"If only you would have been more attentive to the mechanisms of my jutsu, oh well, this answers the question of your validity of being worthy of gracing Naruto Uzumaki's presence.

"There you go with that stupid bullshit about presuming me to be dead, I knew I would take a hit, I merely did this to get up close and personal with you." said Sakura as she activated the Mastery of 100 Seals Jutsu.

"Hehehe, that is more like it, make me have to work for it." said Jesei as he started to sweat.

"You know what to expect now, here it comes!" yelled Sakura as he punches the barrier, breaking it, and then proceeded to run up the totem pole, right at Jesei.

"Well, shit." said Jesei.

Lunesto was surrounded by the bats that he summoned with his jutsu.

"Oh Naruto, this is the first time I ever had a chance to face you head to head, I am so infatuated." said Lunesto with a blush.

"Well if that is the case, then you will not be dissapointed when this fight ends quickly, ya know." said Naruto as he started to walk slowly near the swarm of bats surrounding Lunesto.

"Oh, your hard-ass attitude makes me want to glomp you sooooo bad, hehehehe!" laughed Lunesto with a silent laugh.

"Uhhh, I don't go that way, but you are going to need some serious help after this is over." said Naruto with a confused look on his face.

"I was so inspired by what you were able to do, that it made me push myself to my absolute limits during my time in the crucible, and now I see how beautiful everything really is!" yelled Lunesto as all of the bats surrounding him flew towards Naruto in a swift manner.

"Huh, this is going to be something after all." said Sai as he made sure that none of the civilians of Ishigakure got caught in the crossfire.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 023...-**


	23. Unparalled Kunoichi

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 023: Unparalleled Kunoichi**

Lunesto had activated his Bat Symphony of the Garden Technique, and had a large swarm of the creatures fly quickly towards Naruto.

"So he uses bats, well I have an answer." said Naruto as seven chakra arms grew from his Nine Tails shroud, each producing a Great Ball Rasengan.

"If I can just keep him distracted long enough, then Jesei should be able to finish his mission within a reasonable time." thought Lunesto to himself.

"I better be sure to keep all of these civilians out of harm's way." said Sai as he ran around the outskirts of the battlefield and warned the citizens to stay back.

"What's going on, is someone invading our village?" asked a man that resided in the village.

"No, but someone is targeting one of our team-mates." said Sai as he looked on over towards Sakura's location.

"So, you used the Mastery of 100 Seals Jutsu to recover from that injury, but those three blue orbs will never stop following you, and the more you heal, the more chakra taxing it will be." said Jesei to Sakura as he sat atop the totem pole.

"We will see about that, there is more effects to this jutsu than what you think." said Sakura as she jumped much higher than what she was normally capable of, reaching the top of the totem pole.

"Heh, better jumping ability, I guess all aspects of your taijutsu is increased." said Jesei as he had the totem pole produce a fourth blue orb.

"Trying to get the drop on me again?" asked Sakura as she punched the totem pole with her fist, enhanced by the Mastery of 100 Seals Jutsu, and destroyed the totem pole.

"Ok, that was impressive, but the blue orbs that is spawned will not go away so easily." said Jesei as each orb hovered over Jesei in a defensive maneuver.

"So he is switching from offensive, to a defensive strategy with those orbs, I wonder what the best way to go about this would be?" thought Sakura to herself.

Shikamaru had carefully ran across the nearby buildings, trying to gain a vantage point on Jesei, in order to offer better assistance to Sakura.

"I know she wants to do this alone, but we have to consider the safety of these townsfolk as well." said Sai as he pulled out a Chakra Trench Knife, and firmly held it in his left hand.

"Alright, time to show a new type of technique, but I don't think it will be impressive as Sakura's, hehehe." laughed Shikamaru to himself as he peeked around the corner of a building, spotting Jesei and Sakura.

"Alright, Sakura destroyed that totem pole, but those blue orbs are still there, huh, I wonder if there is a practical application I can use to get rid of them." thought Shikamaru to himself as he closed his eyes, and analyzed everything about Jesei thus far.

"I remember him mentioning something about the mind, and how cognitive thoughts are the key to his power, he seems to be a thinker, hehehe, just like me, this will not be so easy." thought Shikamaru as he ventured deeper into his memories and tried to find an opening.

Sakura and Jesei had a stand-off, each waiting for the other to make a move.

"Hmmm, I bet she gets impatient here soon, I must wait though, no point in fighting close with her while she has that jutsu active, I would lose." thought Jesei to himself.

"So, what made you target me specifically, wanting to take out the medical ninja of our team first?" asked Sakura as she was trying to distract Jesei long enough to charge up chakra in her feet.

"It is nothing against you personally, everyone is judged by the Knights of Dawn, like Amazeo Village for instance, we had some personnel murder everyone in that village for their transgressions, I was not there, but I am sure it was a sight to see." said Jesei as he was trying to rile Sakura up and get her mad.

"That sounds real humble all right, you bastards are no different from the Akatsuki, going around murdering innocent people, and claiming to be doing it for the greater good." said Sakura with a look of anger upon hearing Jesei's statement.

"There is no such thing as innocent people, dark and light, they are just labels that we humans created to brand one another with, in order to make ourselves feel more exalted." said Jesei with a serious look.

"Maybe so, but that is no reason to murder children, or anyone who cannot defend themselves, it sounds like you guys just want conflict to continue, nothing more or less." said Sakura as the chakra pressure under her feet built up, cracking the ground below it.

"Using small talk to prepare for an assault, eh, not going to let that happen!" yelled Jesei as he had two of the blue orbs zoom in on Sakura.

"Shadow Piercing Knife Paralysis Technique!" proclaimed Shikamaru as he threw the Chakra Trench Knife straight into the calf of Jesei, knocking him to the ground, and paralyzing him with the jutsu.

"You again, motherfucker, quit hanging around in the shadows, fight like a true honorable shinobi!" yelled Jesei as he could not move, or stand up due to the injury.

"Sorry, but with all of the blood on yours and your teammates hands, honorable is not a word for someone like you to throw around." said Shikamaru.

"Thank you Shikamaru, now it is my turn!" yelled Sakura as she punched both of the blue orbs at the same time, disseminating both.

"Damn, might as well have the other two orbs defend me from these two." said Jesei as he was slightly worried due to his prediciment.

"Over leaping Leg Drop of the Sky!" yelled Sakura as her right leg was surrounded with a fiery pink chakra, as it came down on the blue orbs defending Jesei, and destroyed them.

"Shit, gotta' think fast, Komittomentto: Five Sacred Colors Slash!" yelled Jesei as he managed to use another Mirage Clone to avoid the fatal injury.

"Damn, and we almost had him, but how did he get away so fast, I had him trapped with my Shadow Paralysis, and Sakura had him cornered, yet he was able to pull out that weird sword and counterattack." said Shikamaru with confusion.

"You are not going to be able to keep this up forever with those clones, I will be sure to put you down this time for good." said Sakura as her hole body was now surrounded by a fiery pink aura.

"Huh, perhaps this is the result of her full prowess while using her jutsu, you are an unparalleled kunoich for sure." said Jesei as he was about to swing his glowing blade towards Sakura.

"I will not fall for your compliments, I am not foolish enough for that!" yelled Sakura.

Jesei swung his sword five quick times, producing a crescent-shaped shard of chakra five times, having the colors Blue, Red, Green, Pink, and Yellow.

"Huh, what is this?" asked Sakura as the five multicolored slashes approached her quickly.

Zaire Senju was walking through the Sun-Braced Grove, one of the four outer areas of Lazarus, as the weather was bright and sunny.

"Time to see how my friend is doing now that he is free of his confinement." said Zaire as many flies could be seen flying to and from a certain direction in the woods.

"Heh, I am going to feel him thoroughly now that he is free." said Zaire as he exited the grassy hill and entered a beautiful forest full of flowering trees and other trees with fruit.

"There you are, and are we looking rather fine today?" asked Zaire as he stood above Joakim, whose entire body had been skinned from head to toe, with blood and flies laying all around him.

"Too bad I skinned your eyelids, you cannot close your eyes and pretend this is a dream now." said Zaire as he sat next to the skinless Joakim.

"Ahhghhhhuughhghghghh." went on Joakim as he was very weakened and moaning, similar to a zombie.

"Now come on, that does not sound enthusiastic to me, I want you to release all of your emotions, after all, you will be reunited with your family soon." said Zaire as he licked the side of Joakim's head, with blood and nerves sticking to the deranged Senju's tongue.

"Please, kill me, please!" yelled Joakim as he was writhing in agony as he felt every single nerve, which was exposed to the air, feel with pain.

"No, I will let you die of infection, slow and painful, that would be the honorable way." said Zaire as he kissed the lip-less mouth of Joakim, almost as if it were a french kiss, before leaving.

"Fuck you." said Joakim as his corpse-like body fell over on to the ground.

"Fuck me, fuck me!" yelled Zaire with blood-shot eyes as he kneeled down next to Joakim and put his thumbs above both of Joakim's skinned eyes, before proceeding to gouge out both of his eyes.

"Gyaaaahhhhhh!" screamed Joakim and puss and blood flowed out of his eye sockets as Zaire removed his thumbs from the man's eyes.

"Without your eyes, you can at least pretend to be in a better place for now, until you reunite with your friends and family in Heaven." said Zaire as he crushed Joakim's skinned head with his foot, crushing it promptly, causing the flayed body to twitch violently for a minute.

"Now that this is over, I must speak with Hirudeguarn at once, I am getting tired of hanging around here, I want to spread my wonderful work to the whole world." said Zaire as he created a large flowering tree and decided to relax for a while before heading towards the main town of Lazarus.

Naruto had destroyed all of the bats created by Lunesto, causing the young man to confront him directly.

"You did not think that would be enough would you?" asked Naruto as he prepared a Wind Release: Rasenshuriken in his right hand.

"Of course not, but I must say this much my boo, the more time I get to spend with you, the better I feel." said Lunesto as he slightly stuck out his tongue and licked his lips.

"Enough of your antics, Wind Release: Rasenshuriken!" yelled Naruto as he threw the spiraling sphere at great speeds towards Lunesto.

"Everyone get down, this is going to be huge!" yelled Sai as he warned the citizens of Ishigakure to duck for cover.

"Earth Release: Cragged Spikes of Belemort!" yelled Lunesto as he created a large wall of spikes to slightly throw off the trajectory of the attack, before weaving more hand signs. "Glass Release: Protecting Visible Core." continued on Lunesto as he was surrounded by a jagged dome of glass which weathered most of the attack.

"Well, you have done good for yourself so far, but it is time I ask you about this boss of yours, and I do not want a bullshit answer." said Naruto as he entered the second stage of his Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, Tailed Beast Mode, minus the Kurama avatar.

"Hehehe, I am in big trouble now, well, there is no point in telling you if you are just going to be arriving at Lazarus in a few days, you can find out then, because he wants to meet you more than you want to meet him." said Lunesto with a grin.

"I would not be so happy about me wanting to meet your boss, I am only doing this to protect the Allied Shinobi Forces." said Naruto with determination as he ran towards Lunesto.

"Go ahead, but later on, you will have a change of mind, once you meet him." thought Lunesto as Naruto kicked him straight in the stomach, causing the glass armor around his whole body to shatter.

Jesei's technique, related to his sword, was homing in on Sakura's location at great speeds.

"Five different colored crescent moon shaped blasts, I wonder if each color has a different effect, better not wait to find out." said Sakura as she ran quickly out of the way of the five slashes.

"That will not cut it, Mind Release: Adam's Protective Whim!" yelled Jesei as he and Sakura, who had arrived within close proximity to him, were teleported to the same black sphere dimension as before.

"I am glad you decided to run towards me in order to seemingly dodge my sword's chakra slashes, but it was not all in fault, welcome back to my own dimension again, and in case you could not figure it out yet, we are in my head, hence the nature of my jutsu." said Jesei with a laugh as the purple light surrounded by vines and berries from before was replaced with a yellow one.

"I must figure out what these colors mean, there has been a consistency between the colors of his techniques, purple, yellow, blue, and perhaps red, and green, but what does it mean?" thought Sakura to herself as she did not let these things escape her attention.

"Now, are you going to try that two finger-touch attack again, you killed my clone before, and it was just as powerful as me." said Jesei as he had Komittomentto, his weapon, in an offensive stance.

"Well, you could put it like that, but I think the one finger variant will prove far more convenient for you!" yelled Sakura as she poked the ground with her ring finger and cracked the surrounding area, breaking out of the sphere.

"Good work, not tell me what do you see?" asked Jesei with a smile.

"Huh, this is Konohagakure, in the past." said Sakura with surprise as only the First Hokage's head was carved on the Hokage Mountain.

"Welcome to my memories, Sakura Haruno, I hope you enjoy your stay." said Jesei as he disappeared out of Sakura's sight.

"Damn it, what now?" asked Sakura to herself as she was approached by a boy with with the same hair color as Jesei, and the same eye color as well.

"Hello miss, you are beautiful, my name is Jesei Leikough, and I want to be a ninja to protect my mom from the evil mercenaries out there." said the adolescent Jesei with an innocent smile.

"What, what is this?" thought Sakura to herself as she grew worried.

"Jesei, I found you, you are it, hahaha!" laughed another child as they were playing shinobi tag.

"Okay Kagami, but I will not loose this time, hey ma'am, want to play with me?" asked the young Jesei with a smile.

"Ummm, sure." said Sakura as she was trying to analyze what was occurring around her.

"I have a few friends but they are the goldest group of guys on the face of the earth, you should meet them sometimes, especially Hiruzen Sarutobi, he is my second best friend!" said Jesei as he and Sakura arrived in the main part of the early Konoha with many trees still not removed in the village.

"Then, who is your best friend?" asked Sakura trying to play along, hoping to find the real Jesei somewhere.

"Hey, Jesie, I got an extra lunch from Mom, want to eat it with me, that is if you don't ummm, mind?" asked a boy in a dark green kimono with dark navy blue skin and long spiky brown hair. He had serpentine eyes, and pink markings around them, but had the face of an angel, overall having a very feminine appearance.

"That shy kid may look like a wimp, but he is the one who saved my life, is name is Hirudeguarn Naga, and he is my best friend." said the young Jesei as he ran towards the serpentine boy, who began to blush.

"Ummm, well, I hope you like it." said the young Hirudeguarn as he hid his face.

"Don't be so shy Hirudeguarn, we have a new villager that want to meet you!" said the young Jesei with a happy tone.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 024...-**


	24. Jesei's Reason

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 024: Jesei's Reason**

Sakura was trapped within Jesei's Mind Release jutsu, and had found herself trapped in Jesei's memories.

"Here is a new friend I found that we can play with Hirudeguarn, she is beautiful isn't she?" asked the young Jesei to his shy friend.

"Ummm, I, I guess so, if only you don't mind." said the boy as he hid his face again.

"How do I get out of here, there is no telling what that freak Jesei is doing in the real world right now." thought Sakura to herself.

"You look sad, here is a flower I picked this morning, umm, you can have it." said Hirudeguarn as he held his little hands out with a daffodil he had picked.

"Listen, none of you are real, this is a genjutsu of some kind, now go away, I need to get out of here!" yelled Sakura as she was getting more and more upset.

"I, I am sorry, I... did not mean to hurt your feelings." cried Hirudeguarn as he ran off down the road.

"You did not have to be so mean to him, he is a very sensitive person." said the young Jesei as he ran off after his friend.

"My my Sakura, you really have no compassion, hehehe." laughed the real Jesei as he appeared in front of Sakura.

"I don't know what you think this will accomplish, but I can break out of this in no time." said Sakura with determination.

"But my dear, this is not a genjutsu, I am not going to hurt you, I just want you to understand me." said Jesei as he disappeared again.

"I don't want to understand freaks like you, and I will get out of here, I will not let you fuckers hurt Naruto!" yelled Sakura as the scene shifted around her, and she was standing in the Konoha Academy with many young students waiting to be picked to their teams.

"I am in the academy now, but this looks like a long time ago, it must be another memory of that Jesei.

"I cannot wait to be a ninja, my dad and grandad were also shinobi." said a young Danzo to the children around him.

"I want to be a good shinobi like my father, Sasuke Sarutobi, and I want to be the best Hokage that there ever was." said a young Hiruzen with a smile.

"I will show the bad guys the fear of my sharingan, and I will protect my friends as well." said a young Kagami with pride.

"Hey, there is that girl again that was mean to Hirudeguarn, she is standing next to our teacher." said the little Jesei to his friends.

"Who is that girl, I have never seen her before." said Hiruzen as he was curious.

"She is a good person, she is just having a hard time right now." said the young serpentine boy with a smile.

"And the members of Team Hashirama will be, Jesei Leikough, Ranma Inuzuka, and Hirudeguarn Naga." said Tobirama, who was the academy teacher at the time.

"Huh, that is the Second Hokage, but the only ones that can see me are those kids over there." said Sakura to herself as she was waiting to see what would happen next.

"The members of Team Four will be Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo Shimura, and Koharu Utane." said Tobirama as Danzo and Hiruzen were happy to be on teams.

The scene shifted again, and now Jesei was at home with his mother, he appeared to be around twelve years old at this point.

"Is Jesei controlling what scenes from his memories appear before my now?" thought Sakura to herself as she was waiting to see what would happen next.

"Jesei, how was your mission today?" asked a woman with medium length brown hair.

"It went good mom, our teacher is the best, he is the Hokage and he is our sensei." said Jesei as he sat down on the porch outside with his mom.

"Are you glad you became a ninja, I remember when we were offered to stay in this village, your father died trying to save us from those mercenaries, but thanks to his efforts, we made it and you will now be able to follow in his footsteps." said Jesei's mom with a smile.

"I will never let anyone hurt you mom, I will be the strongest shinobi this world has ever seen one day, just you wait, and I will fight in the name of dad and all of the villagers of our land." said the young Jesei as he got up, hugged his mom, and ran off into the young village with joy.

"Is he trying to get sympathy out of me, he seemed to be a good kid, but I just don't understand what he is trying to achieve with showing me this." thought Sakura to herself as the scene switched again.

Jesei was now a Chunin, and around sixteen years old, standing in front of the village gates with his friend Hirudeguarn as they were walking back to the village.

"If only Ranma were here to see this, I wish we could have saved her, I am sure Hashirama would be dissapointed in us." cried Jesei as he was upset they lost their teammate on their last mission.

"Don't worry Jesei, I miss her too, but this is the reality of being a shinobi, we put our lives on the line to protect this village and it's people, and with Tobirama being the Second Hokage, we will make sure to serve him well, and avenge Ranma Inuzuka." said a teen-age Hirudeguarn with confidence.

"That is the shy boy from before, he looks a lot like Orochimaru more than before, is he one of those Knights of Dawn perhaps." thought Sakura to herself.

The scene shifted yet again, now Jesei was a Jonin, and he was around twenty-one years old.

"My mom was killed last night in an attack from the Hidden Stone, if I find the people that did this, I will kill them!" yelled Jesei as he was leaning on the ground in a forest near Iwagakure as it rained.

"Get up Jesei, now is not the time to mourn, we must finish this mission, for that is all that matters, personal relations must be abolished, and emotions must be cast aside for the good of the mission." said a young-adult Hirudeguarn with a stern voice.

"That once kind boy grew up to be an asshole, he must definatley be directly related to Orochimaru after all." said Sakura with a look of anger.

"I still have my wife, Ivory at least, I will not let any more of my friends or family die, I will even protect you Hirudeguarn." said Jesei as he offered to give Hirudeguarn a hand shake.

"Focus on the mission, any of this remedial and trivial bullshit will get you killed." said Hirudeguarn with a look of fierce intent.

"You are right, let's finish this mission now." said Jesei as the scene shifted to five more years later.

"With Hiruzen as the Third Hokage, our village has lost one of the greatest shinobi there ever was, Tobirama Senju, and thanks to his valiant efforts against the Kinkaku Force of Kumogakure, we can prosper again." said Danzo with a look of pride.

"I am more disappointed that one of you useless shits was not the one to die, Tobirama was my greatest rival, and yet he had to give his life to save you all!" said Hirudeguarn with a look of hatred.

"Brother, don't be so mean, please just relax, mom and dad want the best for you." said a six-year old Orochimaru as he was picked up from the academy by his brother.

"Hirudeguarn, you do not need to act like that in front of your little brother, show some compassion and be a positive role model." said Kagami with a serious tone.

"Hehehe, whatever you say Kagami, but remember this, we are just soldiers for our leader, just another group of prisoners in the grid iron world of ninja." said Hirudeguarn as he walked his little brother home.

"He has taken Tobirama's death personally, he was this way when Hashirama passed away too." said Jesei as he was the only one who sided with Hirudeguarn.

"I like his ideals, he should have been Hokage instead of Hiruzen." thought Danzo to himself as he was a frequent training partner with Hirudeguarn.

"I am going to see my wife Ivory now, every one take care." said Jesei to his former class mates as he headed towards his home.

"I don't believe this, Orochimaru had a brother, no wonder he ended up the way he did." thought Sakura.

Jesei was walking away from the village, as four more years have passed, and the now thirty year old man was walking with a hooded figure.

"Fuck this worthless village, they could not protect my wife while the ANBU Tree Corps was out on a mission, I will never forgive Hiruzen for this." said Jesei as he decided to cut ties with the village.

"Hehehe, the will of god has been done Jesei, but relax, we do not need Konoha for our needs, we will create a village of our own, and one day we will be the ones who judge mankind." said the man with the hood and old-fashioned samurai armor.

"Okay Hirudeguarn, but one day, I hope to see Ranma, Ivory, and my mother again, that is all I want now, nothing else in this world matters anymore." said Jesei as the two men walked off into the distance.

Sakura then found herself awake and outside of Jesei's memories, standing beside Shikamaru, with Jesei and his sword standing to her right.

"You vanished again Sakura, but only a few minutes later, you and that Jesei reappeared, I guess you were able to overcome his jutsu." said Shikamaru as he held his Chakra Trench Knife in his hand firmly.

"No, I did not break out, he released the jutsu, he showed my his memories, I guess he was trying to make me understand his actions, but I also found out something else." said Sakura as she could see Lunesto laying on the ground next to Naruto and Sai a few kilometers in front of her.

"Those three women, they were the guideposts of my life, and as you know, when you loose someone, it leaves an effect on you, but only those that are able to overcome their grief will succeed." said Jesei to Sakura with a stern tone.

"Then why did you show me this stuff, what can I do for you?" asked Sakura as she gathered more chakra into the marking on her forehead.

"You don't need to do nothing, your test is almost complete, can you be the fourth woman in my life to show me the right way to live, since you were able to overcome your own hardships?" asked Jesei as he started to perform more hand signs.

"This old man is in despair, but he is trying to use you as a leeway to feel better again, I guess he only thrives on the misery of others." said Shikamaru to Sakura.

"You have no idea, Komittomentto: Sacred Spirit of the Haunted Siren!" yelled Jesei as he held up his sword, and conjured a spirit of a ghastly looking woman with long finger nails and a scythe.

"Now, you must overcome my own experiences, and let me tell you, you will not, for you and all of these others do not deserve to be in the presence of Naruto Uzumaki, you are all just burdens to him, and no one has been a bigger burden that you Sakura." said Jesei with an intense look of hate as he had the spirit fly towards her.

"Is that so, I guess you are right about how I used to let Naruto handle all of the problems that arised in the past, but now, I will take care of my own business!" yelled Sakura as she ran towards the spirit and threw her right fist towards it with high speed.

Sakura's attack was unable to connect as she went right through it and landed on the ground.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu." said Shikamaru as he attempted to bind the spirit, but was unsuccessful in doing so.

"How do you expect to be able to attack or bind the haunted siren, hehehe, you will be at her mercy, just like how I was at this pathetic world's mercy back when I was a shinobi of the leaf." said Jesei with a sadistic look.

Lunesto had gotten up off the ground and managed to get some ground between him and Naruto.

"It seems your friends are having some trouble over there with Jesei, how much longer do you think you can focus on me?" asked Lunesto as he was trying to distract Naruto and Sai.

"I would not worry about that, Sakura and Shikamaru can handle themselves, as for you, well your history." said Naruto as he created a shadow clone and prepared another jutsu.

"This time, I will use two Wind Release: Rasenshurikens and have this clone also attack at the same time, that should through Lunesto off guard." thought Naruto to himself.

"I will attack from above as well." said Sai as he performed the Ninja Art: Super Beast Scroll to create several hawks to fly above Lunesto.

"Oh boy, now I have done it." laughed Lunesto as he did not seem to be worried.

"Laugh while you can, but whatever you and your friend Jesei over there have planned, it will not come to pass." said Naruto as he threw both Rasenshurikens towards Lunesto and also had his shadow clone run towards the man as well.

"Glass Release: Shards of the Greater Sun!" yelled Lunesto as he created a large wall of glass, which then absorbed him and separated into hundred of shards which surrounded the area, causing the Rasenshuriken to miss him and explode onto the ground.

"I am glad we got the civilians out of here, but what did he just do?" asked Sai with confusion.

"Heh, I am glad for once, if these guys wanted me to go through the trouble of meeting their boss, they should at least be a threat themselves." said Naruto as he studied the area around him, noticing the hundreds of pieces of glass around him.

"He is hiding in one of these pieces of glass Sai, we need to find out which one, and the best way to do that is to just destroy them at once." said Naruto.

"Okay, I will be on lookout whenever that Lunesto guy shows himself." said Sai.

Sakura and Shikamaru were struggling to find a way to deal with Jesei's most fierce jutsu.

"What is the matter, unable to prove your worth now that my own misery has taken form?" asked Jesei with a saddened tone.

"You can bitch and whine all you want, but in the end, my own will shall show you the truth." said Sakura with a smile.

"Sakura, aim for the scythe of that spirit, it appears to be the only corporeal quality of the jutsu, maybe that will be the way to overcome that man's jutsu." said Shikamaru to Sakura.

"I hear you, time to try that one technique again." said Sakura as she held out her ring finger and surrounded it with fiery pink chakra.

"Hah, that jutsu again, how can you harm my siren with a physical attack?" asked Jesei as the spirit rapidly approached Sakura.

"I will show you!" yelled Sakura as she ran towards the siren and prepared to poke the scythe with her empowered finger.

"Now!" yelled Jesei as the spirit disappeared in front of Sakura and reappeared behind Shikamaru.

"Let's see how far your compassion goes, you infidel." said Jesei as the siren stabbed Shikamaru through the back with the scythe.

"Ugh, damn it, I could not react in time." said Shikamaru as he fell to the ground.

"Shikamaru, damn it, how could I let this happen?" asked Sakura to herself as she was starting to panic.

"Now, I want you to feel the same despair as me when the angel of my life turned into a devil." said Jesei as a tear fell from his eye.

"Hold on Shikamaru, I will be right there!" yelled Sakura as she ran towards her injured friend.

"And now, to kill you too!" yelled Jesei as the siren appeared in front of Shikamaru and threw the scythe, now surrounded by four blue orbs, towards Sakura.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 025...-**


	25. You don't want this!

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 025: You don't want this!**

Shikamaru had been stabbed by the ethereal spirit conjured by Jesei, and it was now approaching Sakura, this time surrounded by four blue orbs.

"You have no one to blame but yourself for this predicament, I am afraid." said Jesei with a apathetic tone as he was certain of his victory.

"I have had it up to here with your ways, I will not let one of my comrades die!" yelled Sakura as she was pierced by the scythe of the spirit, and hit by all four of the blue orbs at once, causing a large cloud of smoke to surround her.

"Well, at least you faced death like a true shinobi, but unfortunately, Naruto may not be too happy with us after this, oh well, it was an order from the boss himself..." said Jesei as he was punched in the face by Sakura, with the Chakra Enhanced Strength activated, causing a large crater to form.

"I had to use the last bit of chakra from the Mastery of One Hundred Seals to heal those injuries and destroy the scythe of that spirit, but it appears to have gotten rid of your jutsu for good." said Sakura as her injuries from taking the jutsu head on were still healing.

"Ughhh, fuck, damn it, I cannot move...you really did survive Mind Release some how, hehehe." laughed Jesei as he laid in the middle of the crater, caused by Sakura's punch, with blood pouring from his mouth.

"I told you I would not just sit idle by and let you do whatever you want, I can handle things on my own, and I am not worthless." said Sakura as she jumped into the crater and stood over Jesei as five in the evening of the fourth day of the journey came around.

"I guess you passed your test of determination and approval after all, but Shikamaru was a nessecery sacrifice it looks like." said Jesei as he was still trying to get into Sakura psyche.

"I don't care about what you have to say anymore, as soon as I heal Shikamaru, I will be back to deal with you, and get any information out of you that I can." said Sakura as she kicked Jesei in the side of his ribs, causing him to wince in pain.

"That is for assurance." said Sakura as she walked towards Shikamaru to heal him.

"Ugh, uhhh, but do you...have enough chakra left to heal him thoroughly?" asked the immobilized Jesei with a look of strife.

Naruto was looking at the hundreds of shards of glass caused by the destruction of Lunesto's jutsu, believing him to be hiding amongst one of the shards.

"I don't see anyone yet Naruto, although it looks like things are wrapping up over where Sakura is, however Shikamaru is not looking too well." said Sai with a worried tone.

"Don't worry Sai, we will help Shikamaru in a moment, as soon as I capture this Lunesto as well." said Naruto as he created twenty-nine shadow clones of himself, and had each one prepare a Tailed Beast Rasengan.

"If I destroy all of these pieces of glass, which might be like a portal for Lunesto to travel between, then he will be forced to show himself." thought Naruto as he and his clones all slammed their jutsu towards the ground and caused all of the strengthened shards of glass to shatter into nothingness, except one shard, which landed beside Naruto's right foot.

"Naruto, there is one more shard of glass beside you, Lunesto has to be hiding in it!" yelled Sai as he noticed the piece of glass from above.

"I see, then I will just stomp it, and that Lunesto can be stuck in some alternate dimension forever." said Naruto as he raised his foot up in the air, and started to slam it down towards the piece of glass.

"You are just too much, Naruto!" yelled Lunesto as he appeared from the ground behind Naruto, with another remaining shard of glass behind him.

"I thought I destroyed them all." said Naruto with anger.

"I created one more piece, and hid it underground, after you shattered my barrier, just in case of a situation like this." said Lunesto as he started to prepare more handsigns.

"Ninja Art: Super Beast Scroll Extermination!" yelled Sai as he drew up four pairs of large swords, and had them home in on Lunesto.

"Those large weapons made of ink are probably as effective as the real thing, hehehe." said Lunesto as he got some distance between Naruto, Sai's jutsu, and himself.

"Glass Release: Piercing Shards of the Ground!" yelled Lunesto as several large columns of sharp, pointed glass rapidly started to emerge from underground, with one managing to leave a very deep cut on Naruto's right thigh, and destroyed Sai's ink weapons.

"Fuck, I was too worried about Sakura and Shikamaru to react quick enough." said Naruto as he appeared to be unphased by the injury.

"I can also control these large shards of glass and increase the size and sharpness, but for a target in the air, I have a different plan." said Lunesto.

"Bat Symphony of the Garden!" yelled Lunesto as he conjured another group of bats, that all suddenly appeared around Sai, each with glowing red eyes.

"Ninja Art: Ink Explosion Blast!" said Sai as he surrounded himself with a drawing of a large greyish sphere, which he planned to use to defend himself from Lunesto's jutsu.

"You have to fly away from the bats, not create a physical defense, that will not protect you from their sonar attacks." said Lunesto with joy.

All of the summoned bats let out a large screech, which seemed to cause great pain to Sai, as his ink bird was destroyed, along with his barrier, as he fell to the ground.

"They are too loud, I could not focus enough to get away." said Sai as the vibrations of the sonar waves disrupted his chakra network.

"I got you Sai." said Naruto as he created a shadow clone to hold him.

"Now it is just me and you, Golden Hero." said Lunesto as he smiled with joy now that he had the chance to be alone with Lunesto.

"No, it is just me." said Naruto, in his Tailed Beast Chakra cloak, as he dash towards Lunesto at great speeds, destroying all of the large columns of glass, and the summoned bats in the process.

"Fuck, no time to get away from this." said Lunesto as he was kicked in the stomach, then swiftly punched in the face by Naruto, Naruto then grabbed Lunesto by his right arm.

"Mini-Tailed Beast Rasengan!" yelled Naruto as a chakra arm from Naruto's cloak created a small black orb of red and blue chakra, and firmly launched it into Lunesto's stomach.

"Gyaaahhahhhhhhh!" screamed Lunesto as he was sent flying into a large building in the vicinity of Ishigakure, resulting in a large explosion that followed.

"Sai, let's go check on Sakura and Shikamaru." said Naruto as he and a shadow clone holding the immobilized Sai ran quickly towards Sakura's location, around seventy kilometers away.

Sakura was tending to Shikamaru's wound, and was very tired from the massive amount of chakra she expended during her battle against Jesei.

"C'mon Shikamaru, you have to pull through, don't let me down now." said Sakura as she started to feel light headed and dizzy.

"Fuck, I cannot pass out now, I have to heal Shikamaru first, that is an absolute must!" yelled Sakura as she pushed herself, before finally starting to faint.

"I hope it was...enough." said Sakura as she passed out, with Shikamaru still having a large portion of his his stab wounds not yet healed.

"Ahhhh, Sakura, can...can you hear me?" asked Shikamaru as he came back to consciousness, and was struggling to move.

Sakura did not respond as she laid beside Shikamaru without moving a muscle.

"Shit, she has passed out from the amount of chakra she expended, but I cannot move, due to these wounds." said Shikamaru as Naruto, and his shadow clone holding the injured Sai, appeared right in front of them.

"Sakura, Shikamaru, I took care of that Lunesto guy over there for the time being, let me heal the three of you." said Naruto as he held out his hand, on the palm being a marking of the sun.

"Naruto touched Sakura's forehead, returning the diamond seal, and bringing her friend back to consciousness.

"Shikamaru, you are up next." said Naruto as he held the palm of his hand on Shikamaru's chest, healing the wound within a few seconds.

"Sai, are you feeling better too?" asked Naruto as he three friends stood to their feet again.

"Yes, thanks Naruto, I feel a lot better now, but more importantly, is Jesei and Lunesto both immobilized?" asked Shikamaru as he was still a little shaken up from the wound he received.

"Yes, I believe so." said Naruto.

"I will go check around that collapsed building where Lunesto was sent flying, you and Sakura can check on Jesei." said Sai as he and Shikamaru went over to the area that Lunesto was launched, due to the effects of Naruto's Mini-Tailed Beast Rasengan.

"Let's check on the state of Jesei." said Sakura as she and Naruto walked to the crater that the old man laid in.

"Hahahaha, so the Golden Hero pull through again, well I'll be damn." said Jesei as he was still slightly bleeding from the mouth, but he was still unable to move.

"That is enough out of you, Lunesto is gone as well, and we will be taking you with us on the rest of our journey, I am sure you can tell us more about this boss of yours, and this time, you will not get away." said Naruto with a stern voice as he was still in his Tailed Beast Chakra Cloak, minus the Kurama Avatar.

"I see, no problem with that, you were victorious today, go ahead, The Apathetic Judge will be pleased to know you passed the first test." said Jesei as three more men appeared behind Naruto and Sakura.

"Lunesto is still alive, he is over there, I will get him immediately." said Lehourihm as he Zaire, and Tetsuga all abruptly appeared in Ishigakure.

"Damn, what now?" asked Naruto.

"Three more of these guys, they are Knights of Dawn too!" said Sakura with distressed tone.

"Sai, look out!" yelled Shikamaru as Lehourihm as he appeared in front of the unconscious Lunesto and blocked Shikamaru and Sai's path.

"Tetsuga, let's get Jesei and Lunesto back to Castle Leviticus, now." said Zaire with a look of excitement on his face as he and Tetsuga stood in front of Sakura and Naruto respectively.

"More of you guys as well huh, hear to clean up the mess?" asked Sakura with a tone of vigilance.

"Bitch, we could care less about you, we are just fuckin' here to get these two deadbeat fucks, orders from The Apathetic Judge, or if you are wanting his real name, Hi..." said Zaire as Tetsuga cut him off.

"Let them find out on there own, it will be more interesting." said Tetsuga as Zaire decided to comply.

"Fine, I will listen for now, but even if you don't want us to save Jesei and Lunesto, we are going to fucking do that anyway!" yelled Zaire as he rammed his left fist towards Naruto, only for the Uzumaki to block it, causing a large shockwave behind Naruto, the result of Zaire's attack.

"Damn, that hurt my forearm, this guy is different from the others." thought Naruto as he threw a punch right back that hit Zaire in the face.

"Wood Release: Emergence of A Flowering World of Trees!" yelled Zaire as he instantly created a large forest of trees that swallowed up the civilians of Ishigakure, killing the entire population, and causing the trees to produce large flowers, which began to open.

"No, all of those poor people, you fucking bastards!" yelled Sakura as she activated her Mastery of One Hundred Seals jutsu again.

"Naruto, Sakura, you two don't want this, trust us, just continue on your journey, let us leave in peaces, and don't mourn the villagers of this place, they were as good as dead anyway." said Tetsuga as he picked up Jesei's body, which Zaire made sure to protect.

"Sai, are you okay?" asked Shikamaru as he and Sai managed to survive Zaire's jutsu.

"Yes, but all of the townsfolk are now dead." said Sai with anger.

"Relax, they are now in a better place, the be with our god in Heaven is the utmost form of compassion that one could ever hope to show." said Lehourihm as he held the unconscious Lunesto, who was bleeding heavily, and missing his right leg, and left arm.

"Goodbye for now, you infidels." said Lehourihm as he vanished with Lunesto before Sai or Shikamaru could react.

"Damn it, we need to find Naruto and Sakura now!" yelled Shikamaru with haste.

"I agree, let's fly over this forest with my jutsu, come on." said Sai as he created two large ink birds, for him and Shikamaru to fly on.

"Zaire, grab Jesei, and use the pollen in case they decide to show resistance." said Tetsuga.

"Make another move and I will turn into Kurama and kill you both!" said Naruto with a look of extreme anger from what Zaire did to the villagers.

"Alright, that is the goddamn spirit, let's have some fuckin' fun, I want to eat skinned fox tonight anyway!" yelled Zaire as veins were popping in his forehead and his eyes blood-shot heavily.

"That is enough, Boss, teleport us back!" said Tetsuga as he and Zaire, who managed to get Jesei's body instantly vanished, as the flowers of Zaire's jutsu closed.

"Fuck, they got away, although I tried to move to stop you, but I swear I could not move." said Naruto as he heard a faint voice in the back of his head.

"The dirge of the golem of Zenith is at a moment's wind, come forth Uzumaki, and face yourself." said a faint voice from within Naruto's head as he passed out.

"Naruto, are you okay?" asked Sakura as Shikamaru and Sai arrived at their location.

"He must also be exhausted from today's battle." said Sai.

"No, he has immense amounts of stamina reserves, he did not pass out due to fatigue, it is something else, that is for certain." said Shikamaru as he picked up the unconscious Naruto and held him on his back.

"The only thing to do now is say a silent prayer for these lost villagers, and then move on once Naruto awakens." said Sakura with a angry, yet sad tone.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 026...-**


	26. Sasuke and Bee's Journey

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 026: Sasuke and Bee's Journey**

Naruto had awaken a few minutes later as he was being carried on Shikamaru's back.

"All of those villagers, I cannot let them get away with what they done!" yelled Naruto as he could not get the hazy feeling out of his mind.

"Naruto, it's alright, something is happening to you, although we don't know what it is." said Shikamaru with a worried tone.

"You just passed out without any warning, it was very scary to be honest." said Sakura.

"Whatever the case, we need to read that scroll and figure out what to do next before those Knights of Dawn can cause any more chaos." said Sai.

"Yes, let me get it out, I believe we will be reaching the border of the Land of Earth tonight, and then on the fifth day, we should be passing Iwagakure." said Naruto as he held his right palm on his forehead.

"Naruto, come fourth, don't tread on me!" said the feint voice from within his mind.

"Let's go on ahead." said Naruto as he shaked the feeling off.

"Only if you are feeling at your best." said Shikamaru as the four shinobi left the now tree covered area where Ishigakure once stood.

Sasuke and Killer Bee had arrived in Konoha, one day after they saved Mei and Kirigakure from Andarius Reiko.

"Man, we did not even find anything worthwhile, I just want something excitin' to happen now!" said Bee as he was not sure what to expect next.

"Don't worry, we will go tell Kakashi if this occurrence, and then let him know that the five Kage are all in on this Summit." said Sasuke as the two men approached Kakashi's mansion.

"Kakashi, Sasuke is here, and it looks like Bee is with him." said Shizune as she was checking all of the documents that Kakashi had signed.

"Alright, come on in." said Kakashi as Bee and Sasuke entered the room.

"Is this pertaining to your own findings, or have you spoken to Naruto?" asked Kakashi.

"I have not met with Naruto since those three men attacked the village, but I will tell you that the other Kage have all agreed to a summit to discuss the threat of these men who call themselves the Knights of Dawn." said Sasuke.

"They are really bad, one almost killed the Mizukage, this is not rad." said Bee.

"Huh, the Mizukage was almost killed by one of them?" asked Kakashi with surprise.

"I spoke with the other four Kages, and they agreed with the idea of this summit, I also met with Orochimaru, and he told me a tidbit of interesting information." said Sasuke with a serious tone.

"Let's hear it then." said Kakashi as Shizune was standing beside him, also curious to hear the new information.

"Apparently the names of the Knights that I have heard of so far are Lunesto, Jesei, Antoine, and Andarius, Orochimaru also said that he had an elder brother named Hirudeguarn, who is related to these Knights of Dawn in some way." said Sasuke.

"A brother, I guess he never really had a reason to let anyone else know, but how could none of us ever come across these guys in the past, that scroll told us where they are located though." said Kakashi.

"What if the whole thing was a trap?" asked Shizune with concern.

"I don't know, but they reside in Lazarus, a city located in the far northwest corner of the Land of Earth." said Sasuke.

"Lazarus, huh that sounds like a cool place, maybe we can all get there in a race." said Bee comically.

"Me and Bee are planning on trailing Naruto, and Orochimaru who had also decided to head out towards Lazarus, although I am not entirely sure if Orochimaru knows that I am aware of this." said Sasuke to Kakashi.

"Alright, I will send a messenger hawk to the other four Kage and let them know of when and where this summit is too take place." said Kakashi.

"Alright, me and Bee are leaving now, good luck." said Sasuke as he and Bee left the Hokage's Mansion, and headed in the direction of Sunagakure.

"We will take a different route than the one that Naruto and his team has taken, so that way we might find some kind of clues as to what those fuckers are planning." said Sasuke as he activated his Rinnegan.

"Don't have no time to waste, we shall find Naruto if we pick up the pace!' said Bee as he entered Version 2 state in order to move more quickly.

Sasuke and Bee traveled very quickly through the mainland of the Land of Fire, reaching the border of the Land of Wind, at around ten in the night.

"Tomorrow will be the fifth day since Naruto left Konohagakure with Sakura and the others, I am not sure which route Orochimaru took though, but me and you will take our own way, directly in a straight route to that Lazarus." said Sasuke.

"Sounds like a full proof plan to me, I can not wait for the sights we will surely see." said Bee with an excited tone.

Tetsuga, Zaire, and Lehourihm had arrived at the Castle of Leviticus, with the injured Lunesto and Jesei in tow.

"Seems they underestimated the strength of their foe, or else they would not have ended up in this condition." said Tetsuga as the three men entered the castle through the main door.

"That Naruto really did a number on one of them, probably that fuckin' stupid Lunesto, he was always too showy with his jutsu." said Zaire with a laugh.

"The Apathetic Judge assigned Jesei to test Sakura's worth, that was the original purpose of the battle in Ishigakure, Lunesto was sent in as backup, but that was not enough either in the presence of Naruto apparently." said Lehourihm as the three men took an elevator to the back end of the castle, which was hidden in the mountains that the front of the castle was built upon.

"Maybe reviving Madara Uchiha, and letting him become the Ten Tail's Jinchuriki again is a good idea after all, he will surely be helpful to us." said Tetsuga as they walked down the hallway in the dark institution-like catacombs of the castle.

"Bullshit, we don't need to desecrate his legacy by bringing him back to the living world, he died under belief that he was wrong in his ways, what will change him now goddammit!" yelled Zaire who was against the idea.

"Me and Dreatoen spoke with Hirudeguarn on this matter, and he agreed to do this." said Lehourihm as he was carrying Lunesto and Zaire was dragging Jesei on the floor, holding only the old man's right arm.

"Please handle Jesei more carefully Zaire, carry him like a human being." said Tetsuga with a stern voice.

"Oh hell, Jesei is a tough bastard, he will be fine." said Zaire as the three men arrived in a hospice-like room and laid Lunsto and Jesei on two gurneys, and handed them over to Channard, a man dressed in a doctor's garb.

"Fix them up Channard, they fought bravely against Naruto, the Golden Hero after all." said Lehourihm to the doctor.

"I will, pleasure meeting you too Lord Zaire and Lord Tetsuga." said Channard as he took the two unconscious Knights into a back room located in a dark corner of the hospice.

"I wonder why all of these screams that you usually hear down in this area are more quiet than usual?" asked Zaire with a dissapointed tone.

"Don't know, but if we find more prisoners, that can change, hehehe, anyway let's go meet boss directly, and ask him what our next move will be." said Tetsuga.

"I will go find Dreatoen, me and him will invade Kumogakure once Naruto arrives here." said Lehourihm as he vanished from the area.

"I will request to patrol the Land of Wind, you never know who will try to intrude on our business, and that damn route to Lazarus is very quick." said Zaire as he and Tetsuga descended further in to the depths of the Castle of Leviticus.

Sasuke and Bee had arrived in the Land of Wind as they decided against resting for the time being, and were pushing to arrive in Lazarus before Naruto and his team did.

"Let's hang tight for a while, if we can make up some ground and get there before Naruto, we can figure out the true nature behind all of the bullshit going on lately." said Sasuke as he was flying in the air with his Complete Body Susanoo.

"Thanks for giving me a ride in this thing, sure beats wasting energy on foot." said Bee as he was traveling with Sasuke in the Susanoo as it flew above the deserts of the Land of Wind.

"Even if one of those freaks spots us, what will they honestly be able to do, I will kill them where they stand." said Sasuke speaking of the Knights of Dawn.

"I am not worried about being found, because if they see us, we will just beat their asses around, wheeeeeee!" yelled Bee as the two shinobi flew further through the night sky above the Land of Wind.

Orochimaru and Taka had arrived at the border of the Land of Earth as they decided to settle down for the night.

"Damn it Suigetsu, if it was not for you, we would probably be in that Lazarus city by now!" yelled Karin with anger towards Suigetsu.

"Hey, I am not the one slowing us down, it is you and your nagging demeanor that makes the positivity of this journey go down the shitter, just like your social skills, hehehe." laughed Suigetsu as Karin punched him again, causing his head to turn into water.

"Sheesh, always the same with you two, Orochimaru is taking this path on the means of being undetected by any potential adversaries, why don't you pay closer attention to what is going on around you?" asked Jugo as Taka sat around a campfire, and Orochimaru stood atop a rock, looking into the night sky.

"Even if they are a motley crew, at least not going alone is a safer alternative when dealing with my brother." thought Orochimaru to himself.

"Are you wanting me to help you out Hirudeguarn, do you want your little brother to be at your side anymore?" asked Orochimaru to himself as he thought about his relationship with his brother in the back of his mind.

"Brother, I was told that I am at the top of this year's academy class." said a young Orochimaru to his older brother, who had the same attire on as Hashirama when he fought Madara.

"Good for you, but that does not mean anything unless you get your priorities straight from the get go, do not get too attached to any of your class mates, because you will loose them, hell ya' might even die yourself." said Hirudeguarn as he glared at his little brother with an intense sensation.

"How come you are never proud of me for what I do, does it have to do with mom and dad's death last year, because I miss them too." said the little Orochimaru with anger.

"Did you yell at your older brother, hehehe, what poor manners, you just keep mastering those jutsu that I put in that scroll for you, and you should be a fine Genin, now leave." said Hirudeguarn as he left Orochimaru alone in the middle of an abandoned training ground.

Orochimaru had directed his thoughts back to the present as he grew angry the more he thought about how things between him and Hirudeguarn had transpired in the past.

"All of my experiments, the Konoha Crush, the death of Hiruzen, my status as the strongest Sannin, and surviving death twice, I guess none if this was enough to impress you, but that is fine, for killing you will be on my bucket list now." said Orochimaru to himself speaking about his brother.

Sasuke and Bee arrived at a cross road at it was now two in the morning.

"We will rest here for the night, we have already traveled a decent distance thanks to the Susanoo." said Sasuke as he landed the Susanoo and the two men sat on a rock in the middle of a stone covered section of the desert.

"I am goin' to pass out for now, when I wake up you can sleep and I will keep watch for you." said Bee as he immediately fell asleep.

"It does not take much for you to snooze away huh?" thought Sasuke to himself as he kept his Rinnegan activated in order to be aware of his surroundings at all times.

"I was right, something is nearby, but it has not approached us yet, I am not sure if Bee sensed it though, but whatever it is, I will wait here until it comes to us." said Sasuke as he detected a chakra presence a mile west of his and Bee's position.

Sasuke had waited as one hour passed but nothing seemed to come out of the signal that he sensed.

"Huh, whatever it is, it is not coming towards us, guess I will get a little sleep for now, it's not like this chakra signal is too dangerous anyway." thought Sasuke as he closed his eyes, assured that nothing was going to come out of the chakra that he detected somewhere around his location.

"That's it Sasuke and Bee, keep following us, the more the merrier, all should gather before the great graces of the Apathetic Judge." said a man wearing a cloak and a floating mirror-like ball next to him.

"I will not indulge you two right now, but once the time is right, your own personal hell will be made clear to you." said the man as he removed the hood, revealing himself to be Dreatoen.

Naruto and his team had arrived in the Land of Earth at this point, and had decided to rest in a cave as it was now four in the morning.

"Damn, we were traveling for a while, and it just seems to never end." said Sai as he fell to the floor of the cave and started to sleep immediately.

"I will keep watch with this shadow clone, I can sleep while he watches, that is the beauty of innovation." said Naruto with a happy tone.

"Good, at least we can rest knowing that someone is keeping watch for us." said Shikamaru.

"Don't overdo it though, if you start to feel funny again, let one of us know." said Sakura as she and Shikamaru also fell asleep.

"Alright, one shadow clone keeping watch should be enough, and once the next day comes around, I will be sure to find out the identity of The Apathetic Judge." said Naruto as he created a second shadow clone to proceed on ahead as he also fell asleep, thinking of Hinata, and his unborn child.

"I will be back soon Hinata, just wait, everything will be fine, and our daughter or son will be the center of our life, I swear, my angel." thought Naruto as he was thinking about the days to come even in his sleep.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 027...-**


	27. The Lonely Void

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 027: The Lonely Void**

The fifth day of Naruto and his friend's journey to the city of Lazarus had arrived, as six in the morning came about, and the sunrise could be seen in the horizon.

"Damn, I could not sleep well last night, I had the worst back pain and I am not sure why." said Shikamaru as he got up and stretched his arms.

"I thought it was too hot to get any good sleep, it seems that the Land of Earth's climate around here is constantly fluctuating." said Sai in a grouchy mood.

"I did not hear anything out of the ordinary last night, it seems that no one is around us at the moment." said Sakura as she was ready to continue on with the journey.

"I feel like I am going to be sick, ughhh." said Naruto as he got up, holding his head and sweating.

"Something has been bothering you lately, did you contract a cold or something?" asked Shikamaru with concern as the four shinobi walked towards a long, winding road that stretched out over a cliff.

"Eh, probably just my nerves getting at me, I am so excited to extract my own kind of justice for what that brown haired freak did to those innocent people back in Ishigakure." said Naruto with a serious tone.

"I see, well nothing else to do now but to venture on ahead, I am also sickened by what he did, and that Jesei as well, he may have gotten away, but I will see that he never forgets me." said Sakura valiantly.

"I am glad to see that everyone is so determined this morning, let's take advantage of that and move forward." said Sai as the four leaf shinobi continued on with their adventure towards the outer reaches of the Land of Earth.

Sasuke and Bee had awoken around seven in the morning, having arrived in the Land of Wind, on their way to Lazarus, after warning the five Kages of the threat to come.

"I did not hear anything out of the ordinary, perhaps those fools knew we are really scary, fool, ya fools!" said Bee as he cleared the sand resulting from a recent sandstorm out of his glasses.

"They will not show themselves out here, if they are so interested in Naruto, they will most likely be approaching the areas around him, since we are a few days behind we should be able to see if anything came down from Naruto's journey." said Sasuke with his Mangekyou activated.

"I really hate this sand, is there not something else finer in this land?" asked Bee as he and Sasuke dashed quickly down the deserts of the Land of Wind towards the Northeast.

Deep within the booming castle of the city called Lazarus, the institution-like atmosphere and the wet, rainy boiler room that surrounded the back of the hallways was lighting the nightmarish atmosphere that adorned the lower ends of the construction.

"I for one am not pleased with how things turned out, I had no idea he would take it that serious!" said Lunesto, who had bandages around his newly-restored limbs, replacing the ones he lost in his battle with Naruto.

"You were fighting the Golden Hero, what do you expect, but let's be honest, that Sakura was a real surprise, she really showed up for that little game of mine, even legitimitley overcame me, she did." said Jesei as he was looking exhausted from the events that have transpired the past few days.

"At least that damn doctor got my surgery right, I was afraid I would not live to see the next day, you know." said Lunesto as he and Jesei approached another long, dark hallway that led to a series of stairs.

"We are going to visit the boss, he will tell us what to do next, now that our current mission has been cleared." said Jesei as the two shinobi walked down the horrific hallway towards a flight of stairs.

"I just hope he is not feeling angry today, I swear I did my best against Naruto." said Lunesto with a worried expression as he and Jesei started to walk up the flight of stairs that led to an upper level above the catacombs of the castle.

"I wonder, what brings you two here today?" asked Lehourihm, as he was waiting for Jesei and Lunesto at the top of the first flight of stairs.

"Lehourihm, you were one of the three sent to save us, what did the boss have to say about what our next move should be?" asked Jesei as Lehourihm joined his two comrades in walking towards their boss' quarters.

"I have not heard, ever since it started raining heavily around here in recent hours, he has been quiet, perhaps he is anticipating the arrival of Naruto Uzumaki, and that alone should give us a clue as to what awaits us next." said Lehourihm as he knew what awaited them.

"So, we just wait for Naruto to arrive here, well, what about reviving Madara then, you and Dreatoen were making a big deal about that?" asked Lunesto with curiosity.

"Soon, but for now we have to let the next three days play out, after all, you cannot rush good things, you have to take your time." said Lehourihm as the three of them arrived at a large set of double doors covered in blood.

"I will ask the boss myself, he will be more clear about the state of affairs around here than you have!" said Jesei as he was in a haste to hear from his boss personally about what to do next.

"Okay, suit yourselves, but don't be surprised if he throws the both of you out of his window." said Lehourihm jokingly as he teleported out of sight.

"I guess he was just trying to scare us, but he ended up making me excited to find out more about this whole revival of Madara Uchiha!" said Lunesto with a tone of excitement.

A few hours passed as the sun was now shining brightly in the sky, and the rain could be seen in the process of condensation as Orochimaru was traveling with Taka, and was in a great haste.

"How much longer must I be in anticipation of seeing you again, brother, I will not be able to hold back the urge of killing you, it makes me so excited that I cannot handle it." thought Orochimaru to himself as he was in front of his three followers.

"We will be there soon won't we, I can tell by the way Lord Orochimaru's pace has increased, I think he really wants to meet this man more than the other way around." said Suigetsu who could barely keep up.

"This person that Orochimaru and Sasuke are going after could be a dangerous man Suigetsu, we all need to be careful once we arrive in at the destination, especially if Orochimaru is this psyched to meet him." said Jugo as he could read Orochimaru's intentions.

"Heh, there is no reason to be scared with the four of us traveling together, I feel sorry for whatever sad bastard encounters us, but of course if I do not get something to eat soon, I may pass out." said Karin who was grew more angry the hungrier she got.

"Bring Suigetsu, Jugo, and Karin was a good idea after all, they will play a good role in invading my brother's castle, because unlike me, he never had a talent for studying the overall nature of this world's history." said Orochimaru as he and Taka approached a large canyon filled with rivers, trees, and bridges that led from one part of the canyon to the other.

"I guess we have to go down there now, eh?" asked Suigetsu to Orochimaru.

"Yes, this canyon will lead to a large vast plain that will then take us on a direct path to Lazarus, and soon this little journey of ours will get very exciting!" said Orochimaru with a fierce look in his eyes as he was eager to descend into the canyon.

"I have never seen him this excited before, it could be a testament to what is to come." thought Jugo to himself.

"Man, I don't see any food in sight around here, maybe I can take a piece of Suigetsu and eat him, hehehe." laughed Karin.

"The only thing you need to eat is a batch of patience." said Suigetsu as Karin smacked him in the head, causing it to turn into water.

"Hahahaha, gets you every time, like a child almost." said Suigetsu mocking Karin.

"That is enough fooling around, we are now entering this canyon, be on the lookout for any Iwagakure shinobi, or even better, one of those Knights of Dawn." said Orochimaru as he and Taka arrived at the first bridge in the vast canyon.

"You always ridiculed me when we were younger, and to make it worse, I spent my best efforts into research and figurative thinking revolving around what you told me when I was a child, I even grew to hate Hiruzen's foolish teachings, but once I heard about the Akatsuki, I had forgotten about you, and now that all of these events have come to passed, being the coward you are, you take advantage of the absence of competition to snag up Naruto for yourself, I will take great pleasure in sending you to hell, hehehehehe, hahahahahah!" laughed Orochimaru as he ran at high speeds across the canyon, leaving Taka in the dust.

"Damn, something is pushing him, we will never fucking catch up now!" yelled Karin.

"Hey, let's speed up too, let's show Orochimaru we are just as good as him!" yelled Suigetsu.

"Good idea, though I may be more proficient than you two in that department." said Jugo as he formed jet boosters on his back, a result of his clan's Sage Transformation, and quickly blasted off into Orochimaru's direction.

"Son of a bitch, he could have at least waited for us to grab onto him!" said Suigetsu as he grabbed Karin's arm and decided to run at his fullest speed.

"Hey, let go of me ya' motherfucker, I can run at my own pace you hear, I don't need your help!"! said Karin as she tried to kick Suigetsu in the head, only for him to pick up Karin in his arms, and run while holding her.

"Huh, uhhhh, what, ehhh... Suigetsu...what are you doing?" asked Karin as she began to blush immensely.

"Making sure you do not get left behind, my beautiful demonic red-head." said Suigetsu as he sped up to catch Jugo and Orochimaru.

"What...wait...beautiful, Suigetsu called me beautiful, what the hell, that is...not too bad." said Karin as she smiled and looked up at Suigetsu as he was carrying her.

"Make any signs of resistance and I drop your nice ass!" said Suigetsu comically.

"Then I will make sure you fall down this chasm with me!" said Karin.

"Sheesh, those two back there are somehow managing to keep up with me, oh well, I just hope that Orochimaru does not destroy the entire city once we get there, I would like to do a little sight seeing." said Jugo as he could see Orochimaru at the end of the canyon waiting on his three followers to catch up to him.

"About time you make it here, I was so intrigued on the prospect of facing my brother that I seemed to have forgotten about taking the three of you into consideration, kukukukuku." laughed Orochimaru sinisterly as Suigetsu and Karin also caught up.

"I see the two love birds made it as well, keep yourselves in line, or I may gobble you up!" said Orochimaru trying to psyche out Suigetsu again.

"There you go trying to act like a monster again, we all know that women are the true monsters." said Suigetsu as he let Karin down on her feet.

"And red-headed women are the worst kind of demons." said Suigetsu as he anticipated Karin smacking him in the face again.

"Thank you, I agree all the same." said Karin cheerfully.

"...The fuck?" asked Suigetsu to himself as Orochimaru looked on to the road ahead as three in the afternoon came about.

"Six more hours of travel this way, and we should be within a day's reach to Lazarus, I can finally validate my existence once again, I will not be confined to existing in this lonely void of hellish principles that were laden upon me by a bunch of peace loving old fools, I will be able to feel alive again when I see him, the White Snake can finally slither down to it's nest and feel at home again, without any sorrow in it's soul, I have missed you brother, I have missed you greatly." said Orochimaru as he was eagerly awaiting his chance to strike the man down for good.

"Yes, once you make him pay for the things that he did, it will be justice best served." said Jugo as he stood beside his master.

"No, it is not what he did to me, and there is no justice in this mind, it is all about validation." said Orochimaru as he and Taka decided to take a slower pace traveling down the field that was beyond the canyon.

Naruto, Sakura, Sai, and Shikamaru arrived at a similar canyon that they managed to quickly traverse through, and had arrived at a series of mountainous valleys that were in front of them.

"So, this is the next destination, eh, looks like it." said Naruto as he was looking at the scroll he received from the Knights of Dawn to confirm his thoughts.

"It looks to be around five in the evening judging by the position of the sun, once we reach the end of these valleys, it should be night, and we should be very close to Lazarus at that point." said Shikamaru as he studied the map alongside Naruto.

"I cannot wait to get there, maybe they will have other artists who will appreciate my work, unlike you three." said Sai with a distressed tone.

"Oh my, we appreciate your work Sai, you just never ask us." said Sakura.

"I will tell you something I appreciate, slamming that bastard from back in Ishigakure to the ground, and making sure he never gets up again." said Naruto as he activated his Nine-Tails Chakra Mode and was in anticipation of any threats that awaited in the valleys ahead.

"I like the sound of that, shanarrooooo!" yelled Sakura as she was also excited about arriving at their destination within a day and a half.

"Could this whole adventure so far have been a trap, or maybe I am just thinking too much, but still, to have Naruto come here alone would have been a bad idea, but maybe the enemy is expecting for Naruto to have some company, only way to find out is to push on ahead." said Shikamaru as he had shaken out all of the doubts in his mind and followed behind Sai, Naruto, and Sakura as they approached the nearby mountainous valleys ahead of them.

Sasuke and Bee arrived in a far corner of the Land of Earth around seven in the evening, far from where Naruto and his company was at.

"So, this path will get us there the quickest?" asked Bee as he and Sasuke were jumping through the trees that were above a large chasm in the middle of a derelict field.

"Yes, and once we do get there, we will make sure to clean that whole place out, before Naruto ever has to get his hands dirty." said Sasuke as the six tomoe in his Rinnegan glowed.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 028...-**


	28. Story of the Young Serpent

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 028: Story of the Young Serpent**

Evening has come to pass as Naruto and his team were on their fifth day of a perilous journey to meet with the leader of the Knights of Dawn. It was now around eight in the evening, and the Konoha shinobi had arrived at the end of the series of mountainous valleys that were ahead of them.

"Man, that was quiet the walk, I thought we were never going to see the end of that ravine!" said Sai who was happy to be out of the valleys.

"Just one more day, and we will be right on that freak's door step." said Sakura with a look of joy.

"You could say that, but only then will we find out if this whole trip was worth the time we spent on it so far." said Shikamaru with a tired expression.

"I think this could not get any more serious, especially after the lengths that those Knights of Dawn have went through to get my attention, not to mention all of the terrible acts they have probably committed." said Naruto to Shikamaru as the team continued to walk briskly on the cliff side that led past Iwagakure.

"I have been looking at the scroll lately, and we are only sixty miles from the actual location of this Lazarus place, so I was thinking that maybe six days, not seven like we originally thought, will be enough to arrive there." said Shikamaru to the rest of his team.

"If that is the case, arriving early would be a good thing, but what if the enemy does not take a liking to that, they could be a group of meticulous people after all." said Sai with worry.

"We will just have to be fashionably early then, that should show them how seriously we have taken that so called invitation of theirs." said Sakura.

"Not only that, but if this boss of theirs really does want to meet me for a certain reason, I would think that the sooner we get there, the better." said Naruto as the gang were closing in on their final checkpoint.

"Naruto, I sense something around twenty miles ahead of you, it is not an enemy, but it definatley is not a normal occurrence." said Kurama from within Naruto's conscious.

"Well, you have been quiet for the most part, but to here you now is refreshing, and what do you think it could be that you have sensed?" asked Naruto in his mind to Kurama.

"I did not want to disturb you on your journey, besides, I have seen those terrible dreams that you have been having as of the past month, every time one of them has occurred, this same chakra that I am sensing ahead of us, it was surrounding you, and only you." said Kurama with a word of caution.

"Huh, you don't say, heh, I will have to keep in my enhanced chakra mode to disrupt this foreign chakra then, I would hate to have to deal with his bullshit again." said Naruto to Kurama as he could picture the vivid nightmares he had when he was back in Konoha, as well as the voice he was hearing in the back of his mind.

"Just remember to keep your senses up, I don't want you to go overboard while on this journey of yours, and if things go awry, unleash me, I will protect all four of you." said Kurama to Naruto.

"Thanks, I will be sure to keep that in mind." said Naruto as he and his friends had arrived at their resting spot for the night.

Orochimaru and Taka had arrived in a road surrounded by a pine tree forest to the left, as they were closing in on their destination as well.

"Fuck, it cannot be much longer right, I mean we should be there soon, we have been on this expedition for a week now." said Suigetsu as he was complaining again.

"That also makes the seventh time you have complained in the last hour, it appears to be a new record, I cannot believe it." said Jugo sarcastically towards Suigetsu.

"Well, you can just go on ahead then, I will gladly take my time approaching this, after all, we have no idea what is coming next." said Suigetsu with caution.

"What makes you so scared all of a sudden, you don't hear Lord Orochimaru complaining do you?" asked Karin as the three Taka members decided to give Orochimaru some room as he stood on the top of one of the many pine trees alone, having decided to take a break for the night.

"Heh, those Taka sure are more impatient by the day, perhaps they want to meet you as well, but it will be different for me, for only one more day serperates us, brother." thought Orochimaru to himself as he stood in front of the sunset with a joyful look.

"I still remember being a child and the things you did during those times, funny how I would go on to repeat them, only for you to consider me a failure." said Orochimaru as he clenched his fist in anger, as his mind decided to look back on the days of his past.

Orochimaru had remembered the days when he was around five years old, living in Konohagakure with his parents, and the few times he got to meet his brother during this period.

"Orochimaru, where are you, I have some good news for you!" said a beautiful woman with long black hair, and a white complexion, having the same purple marking around her eyes as her son did.

"Mom, is something wrong, did I forget my items from the academy again?" asked the little Orochimaru as he came out of his room and walked somberly to his mother, who was outside sitting on the porch looking at the streets of Konoha around them.

"No honey, you passed your graduation entry exam, you are in, why the sad face for, tell mom what is wrong, I hate to see you look like that." said the mother with an endearing look.

"Mom, when is big brother going to be back from his mission, I have been missing him, and dad is also away too, but he is not on a mission, I cannot figure out what is going on." said the child to his mother with a saddened tone.

"I know it is hard for your brother and father to be away all of the time, but one day you will be right there with them, protecting the village as the head of the Naga clan, and I believe you will be the strongest shinobi to ever come out of this village." said Orochimaru's mother as she stood up and gently put her hand on his head.

"Let's go to the park, your friend might be there today, he is just as energetic as you are." said the woman with a calming tone.

"Okay mom, thank you." said Orochimaru as he held his mother's hand, and then they peacefully walked through the village happily and without a care.

"I cannot wait to go to the academy in a few days, but I will miss you while I am away mom." said Orochimaru with a sad expression.

"I know, but I will always be in your mind, and your feelings, I can never leave you there, right?" asked the mother with a tone of joy.

"You really think so, as long as I think of you in my heart and mind, you will never leave me?" asked the child as he could see the park right in front of him.

"Yes, I know so, now go on and play with your friend, I will be right back, and remember, Mother always loves you." said the woman with a soft tone as she have a hug to her son before walking towards the nearby store.

"I will see you soon mom, be careful." said the young boy as he ran towards the the park bench, to find his friend sleeping on it, not noticing anything going on around him.

"Hey, wake up, you fell asleep again." said Orochimaru in a quiet tone, not wanting to scare his friend.

"Hehehe, you fell for it again Orochimaru, it was another one of my tricks!" said the spiky white haired boy as he awoken and jumped in front of the startled Orochimaru.

"Jiraiya, that was the second time you tricked me in the past week, I seem to be loosing it." said Orochimaru as he fell to the ground.

"Aww, come on, it was just a prank, anyway let's go play on the rock climbing area, I always win over there!" said the young Jiraiya as he held out his hand towards Orochimaru.

"I can get up myself, I don't want you to think I am soft after all!" said Orochimaru in a playful manner as he ran towards the rock climbing wall with joy.

"Hey, that is not fair, you got a head start on me, I will not go easy on you once I get there, do you hear!" yelled the young Jiraya as he raced Orochimaru to the rocks.

Elsewhere, Orochimaru's mother had arrived at the local shop, but her mood suddenly changed as she noticed someone standing beside the door to the shop.

"Mother, it has been a while, I have returned, and I expect that Orochimaru has entered the academy by this point, right?" asked the tall, dark blue skinned man with long brown spikey hair, and pink eye markings around his green-snake lit pupils.

"Hirudeguarn, leave your little brother alone for right now, he is playing with Jiraiya, give him some time to have fun, he is only a child, besides, I have missed you too, come and give your mother a hug." said the woman with a look of joy.

"Iris, that is enough, I will call you mother only by relation, not by endearment, for when one gets too attached to someone, it can weaken them, I have learned this ever since my sensei and rival passed away." said Hirudeguarn with a stern voice.

"I see, sorry to have bothered you, take care now, and remember I will always be with you in spirit when things get tough." said the mother to her eldest son.

"I don't have a spirit, just a impulse, an impulse to kill, so that you and father can have food to survive on." said the dark-minded man as he vanished from in front of his mother and started to walk on a roof of a building overlooking the park where Orochimaru and Jiraiya were playing at.

"He is still as restless as ever, I hope one day he will come to appreciate the friends and family around him." said Iris as she walked into the store with a now saddened tone.

"I am sorry ma', I do love you, really, but I have to keep my thoughts in check, I must not allow the worthless sinners of this world to get into my head!" thought the disturbed Hirudeguarn to himself, as he was wearing the same attire that his sensei, Hashirama wore when he was a shinobi.

"Hey Orochimaru, I am beating you, I am almost at the top of the wall, you are falling behind." said Jiraiya as he and Orochimaru were almost at the top of the rock climbing wall.

"Oh yeah, well I will not give up so easily either, come back here!" said Orochimaru as he grabbed on to Jiraiya's leg and pulled himself above the bespectacled boy, almost reaching the roof.

"Not on my watch!" said Jiraiya as he grabbed on to Orochimaru's back, and hugged him tightly, in order to slow the boy down.

"Hey, now you are cheating, and I am going to fall, let go Jiraiya, you idiot!" yelled Orochimaru in panic as he and Jiraiya were about to fall off the fourty foot wall.

"Oh no, sorry about that Orochimaru." said Jiraiya as he jumped ahead of Orochimaru and made sure to hold on to his friend's hand, making sure that neither of them fell off.

"Hey look, it seems we are both going to reach the top of the wall together, now isn't that something?" asked Jiraiya as he was still scared from almost falling off earlier.

"Yeah, but no thanks to you almost causing us to fall, you air head." said Orochimaru back comically.

"What would you like to do next?" asked Jiraiya with a tone of joy.

"Umm...well...I.." said Orochimaru as his mood suddenly changed from joyful to somewhat scared.

"Playing children's games again, eh?" asked the looming, menacing Hirudeguarn as he appeared on the roof of the wall where his brother and Jiraiya were at.

"Well, we are children you know, duh." said Jiraiya laughing to himself.

"Please forgive him brother, don't get mad, that is just the way he is!" said Orochimaru, not wanting his friend to get hurt.

"Hehehe, don't worry about that, I have another thing to tell you though, although I have yet to tell mom, I will talk to you about it in private, so tell your little friend goodbye." said Hirudeguarn with a serious tone.

"Awww, you have to leave now, we were having fun." said Jiraiya in a disappointed tone.

"I will be back tomorrow, I promise." said Orochimaru to his friend with joy.

"That is only if there is a tomorrow." said Hirudeguarn as he forced his little brother to follow him back home.

"Ugh, brother, you are hurting my arm, what is the matter, did something happen, ugh, owww." said Orochimaru as his brother was pulling him by the arm, forcing Orochimaru to walk along side him.

"Father is dead, he died as the result of Konohagakure not giving him any reinforcements when an Iwagakure shinobi attacked his platoon, but then again, he was a little too old to be doing a killer's work, hehehe." laughed Hirudeguarn as he looked down to see his brother's reaction.

"What, father is dead, no, what...do you mean?" asked Orochimaru with a saddened tone.

"Hey, he died as a shinobi in the end, that is all that matters, and you must learn that too once you enter the academy, to become a shinobi, is to be someone who masters all jutsu, and to never give up, and I have mastered both, but for you, it will be a different path." said Hirudeguarn as he and Orochimaru arrived at their house.

"Now, I will teach you the Naga clan's greatest jutsu, of course it will take a while before your weak mind comprehends them." said the older brother with a harsh tone.

"But big brother, we should tell mom that dad is hurt, and that he is not coming back." said the young Orochimaru as he was trying to hold back his tears.

"Hehehehe, hahahahaha, who the fuck cares, and if you don't listen to me, I will make sure mom joins him, is that enough motivation to listen to me, you ignorant little shit!" yelled Hirudeguarn with a tone of hatred to his little brother.

"Umm...yes.." said Orochimaru as he was very scared and tried to hold back his tears the best he could.

"Good boy, and now, to teach you how to be a killer, and for the next four years, this will be your purgative." said Hirudeguarn with a look of malice.

"What do we do first then?" asked Orochimaru as he tried to remain serious in front of his brother.

"We have to learn to not be affected by our parent's deaths, of course mother is still alive, she said she would always be in your heart and mind, well erase her from your heart and mind, only feel your thoughts with ambition and reason, don't lurk to the idle mind of attachments and feelings, the only feelings that matter is pride and respect, and never become attached to anything, and I mean never, for if you listen to me, you will be like the Hermit of the Six Paths." said Hirudeguarn with a disturbed look.

"Ummm, only if that makes you happy brother." said the young child as he did not know what else to say.

"Good, being blind to your own will, and clinging to mine, that will allow you to be like an extension of me, that is what being an elder brother is about, hehehe." laughed the man as he looked upon Orochimaru, with a deadly intent in his mind.  
 **  
-To be continued next time with Chapter 029...-**


	29. The Progression of the White Snake

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 029: The Progression of the White Snake**

Orochimaru continued to remember the events that transpired between him and his brother all of those years ago.

"One month has passed since father's death and you have taken in well, using that pain in your heart for motivation." said Hirudeguarn to his little brother as he was picking him up from the academy.

"I know, let's not talk about it, mother is still taking it hard." said Orochimaru with a saddened tone.

"Goddammit, I know, but I don't care you hear, the only thing that matters to me is to help you become the best you can be, Orochimaru, I want you to one day be able to put the fear of God into someone just by glancing at them!" said Hirudeguarn with an excited tone as he and his brother were walking towards one of the many training grounds that Tobirama had built around the village during his rule.

"Huh, but, that is not true, I am just not sure what I want to do anymore, I don't want to be like you!" yelled Orochimaru to his brother with a confused mind.

"You will never be like me, you will be you, and that is to quit fucking around and master our clan's special techniques by the time you become a Genin, so more approximately, you have three years to do so, and I believe you can." said Hirudeguarn with a slight look of confidence for his brother.

"Huh, you think I can...do it?" asked Orochimaru as his mood subtly, yet slightly changed.

"Yes, and I will not stop until you have achieved that level of prowess for yourself." said Hirudeguarn with a stern tone.

Three years have passed as the now eight-year old Hirudeguarn had graduated from the academy, along with his friend Jiraiya. Hirudeguarn had shown up shortly after the announcement to speak with his brother the first time in six months, as he was busy being on the ANBU Tree Corps, the early version of ANBU.

"You have done well this past three years, my brother, keep up this determination of yours, and you shall surely become Hokage one day, or even greater if you desire, hehehe." said Hirudeguarn as he pat his little brother on the head, while also giving him an intense glare.

"I will be the best Genin in this village, just you wait and see brother." said Orochimaru with a tone of joy.

"No, just be the best killer you can be, and start with Iwagakure." said Hirudeguarn as Hiruzen approached the two brothers, accompanied by Jiraiya and Tsunade.

"Congratulations on becoming part of the Third Hokage's team, you can just call me Hiruzen, my likes, uhhh...Pipes, the ones that you smoke, hehehe, my dislikes, well, cowardice, and my dream is to see the next generation of leaf shinobi surpass us." said the younger Hiruzen with a look of joy.

"Heh, still acting joyful to these ignoramus children even after becoming Hokage, just remember that my brother will be counting on you to guide him to the next outpost of his destiny, Lord Third." said Hirudeguarn as he turned around and started to walk away.

"Brother, I will see you soon, don't forget to teach me something new next time we meet." said Orochimaru with a tone of anticipation.

"Sorry about that, but your new teacher is Hiruzen. I will just coach you on when you truly become a warrior." said Hirudeguarn as he ran off towards the gates of the village.

"Don't worry about him, Orochimaru, your brother is just over-working himself as of late, anyway why don't you three introduce yourselves." said Hiruzen to his three new genin.

"My name is Jiraiya, and you can hand me over my love letter later." said Jiraiya as he looked over towards Tsunade.

"My name is Tsunade, and I would never accept a love letter from a spinless fool." said Tsunde as she scowled towards Jiraiya.

"My name is Orochimaru, and I want to be a shinobi that can see through the haziest fog, and look towards the truth of reason." said Orochimaru as Hiruzen clapped towards his answer.

"That was a brilliant response Orochimaru, Tsunade and Jiraiya would do well to pay attention instead of getting into another fight." said Hiruzen to his prized pupil.

Two more years passed on as Orochimaru began to recount the events surrounding the passing of his mother.

"Heh, she died as the result of a spy coming into the village from a foreign country, she along with thirty-one others were the casualties that were the result of a poor job from the barrier team to protect the citizens of our village." said Hirudeguarn to the ten-year old Orochimaru as he was crouched over, sobbing at his mother's grave.

"First Rivoulzione, and now Iris, both father and mother are dead, why did this have to happen so soon?" asked Orochimaru with a tone of despair.

"That is the way of the rotten shinobi system, brother, and even if one is retired from being a shinobi, they are to still die at the hands of a ripe. new one." said Hirudeguarn as he thought back to killing the spy that killed his mother.

"I know you killed the one that got mom, but that still does not bring her back!" yelled Orochimaru to Hirudeguarn with a sad and angry tone in his voice as it began to rain on the memorial of the village.

"But, it was a good sense of satisfaction to kill him, because once I start killing, I kill 'till the bitter end." said Hirudeguarn as he left his brother alone in the memorial as he walked off towards the Hokage's mansion.

"Brother, where are you going this time, you always leave me alone, and now there is no one for me to go home to!" yelled Orochimaru with tears as his brother stopped in his tracks.

"Listen you fucker, try to stop me from doing my next mission, and I will cut your little head off where you stand, and then you can see mom and dad in hell!" said Hirudeguarn with a look of insanity in his eyes as he turned around and continued walking towards the Hokage's mansion.

"Forget it, I cannot deal with you anymore, I must go continue my training to become a Chunin, and to avenge father and mother's deaths in a true way." said Orochimaru to himself as he also left the memorial.

Five more years passed, as Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraya were all Chunin and standing in front of their sensei, Hiruzen, all with looks of pride and joy.

"Congratulations on your one year-anniversary of becoming a Chunin, and now strive to become Jonin-level and become a shinobi like no other." said Hiruzen to his three pupils with pride.

"Don't worry about that, for I am the great Jiraiya of Mount Myoboku, the man who steals the heart of the ladies, and the demon of the great toads!" yelled Jiraiya with a gallant display.

"Geez, what a stupid display of maturity, you dumbass." said Tsunade as she scowled at Jiraiya again.

"I will not give up until I meet with my parents again, just like the time you showed me the White Snake's shedded skin, sensei." said Orochimaru to his sensei.

"Yes, I remember, it was three years ago, and I still mean it to this day, even though your brother has gone missing, I still believe you will find him as well." said Hiruzen to Orochimaru with a tone of assurance.

"No, I don't care about that anymore." said Orochimaru as he walked away and headed towards his abandoned home to be alone.

Orochimaru then had a moment from ten years later strike his mind, during the time of the Second Shinobi World War, where he was now twenty-five years old.

"Hanzo has declared us the Sannin, in exchange for letting us go." said Jiraiya with a feeling of discomfort.

"Well, it does not matter anyway, I would have killed him eventually, but I was more concerned with the welfair of you two first." said Orochimaru with a tone of anger.

"Hey, that is no way to act Orochimaru, we all three made it through this hellish battle together, and we shall always fight together." said Tsunade to her dark minded team-mate.

"It does not matter anyway, Tsunade you return home to Konoha, Jiraiya has decided to help out those worthless war orphans, I have my own things to attend to." said Orochimaru as he left Tsunade and Jiraiya and quickly ran out of the outskirts of Amegakure towards a large forest, with the ground flooded with water.

"Hehehe, if I can control the tides of war this time around, I can become the village leader and order a new law, requiring the war to go on, after all peace is no fun, a windmill must constantly be in motion, for the principles of life have made the monotony of a common-dwellers life almost like torture for me to bear." said Orochimaru as he was standing in the shin-deep water of the flooded forest a few miles south of Amegakure.

"The perfect cure for this abstinence called reason is eradication." said a mysterious figure, surrounded by mist, as it approached Orochimaru.

"Hirudeguarn, it is nice to hear from you again, although I am still not in control of the tides of the Second Shinobi World War yet." said Orochimaru to the man that stood obscured by the mist.

"Remember, don't let those worthless friends of yours slow you down, your goal is to become like the Hermit of the Six Paths, and to discover the true, final secrets of Ninjutsu, that is what you told me after all." said Hirudeguarn as he remained hidden by the great abundance of mist surrounding the inner part of the flooded forest.

"Yes, and one day, me and you shall judge this world together." said Orochimaru as he was pleased to be acknowledged by his brother at last.

"No, just God, you are a mere heathen." said Hirudeguarn as he left in a swift manner, leaving Orochimaru alone again.

"Heh, time to murder several Amegakure shinobi, and use their bodies to test out a new jutsu I presume, and as for you brother, I will acquire the Rinnegan and Sharingan one day, that will put me above you." said Orochimaru with a tone of ambition as the current Orochimaru directed his thoughts back to the present as the sixth day since he and Taka left for Lazarus had arrived.

"You were standing still for over twelve hours, I guess falling asleep, while standing up only adds to your creepy facade." said Suigetsu who expected not less from Orochimaru.

"Unlike you, I think of what is to come, and let me tell you this, I will kill my brother, and will enjoy seeing that Lazarus burn to the ground, after all, I am sure Naruto and Sasuke will arrive there soon as well." said Orochimaru as he suddenly had thoughts of acquiring the powers of the Uzumaki and Uchiha to combat his brother.

"Of course, compared to those two, I am but an ant, however my mind and ambition is far above theirs, as they desire peace yet again, while, rather than conflict, I desire to see God." said Orochimaru to himself quietly as Karin, Jugo, and Suigetsu followed him.

The surrounding area resembled a beach, with a vast ocean, as Orochimaru and Taka had arrived on the upper-north coast of the Land of Earth.

"We are vastly approaching Lazarus now, but we must still be patient, for Naruto and those other fools from Konoha are also on their was there as well." said Orochimaru to the members of Taka.

"Then why not let them take care of it, I mean, if these Knights of Dawn are troublesome opponents, then surely it would be wise to let Naruto deal with them, while we wait to meet up with this guy that you want to see so badly." said Karin who did not feel like getting dragged into a large conflict again.

"No, I will not be denied the joy of meeting Hirudeguarn Naga this time, I will take great joy in the fact that my own life is now coming full circle, and the worthless dredges that I surrounded myself with years ago, are now all void." laughed the man as he looked over towards the ocean, and saw the feint image if a large, skinless golem-like creature shortly materialize, before vanishing again.

"Huh, what was that, brother, are you already aware of my arrival, could it be?" asked Orochimaru to himself.

"The hell is he going on about, this is crazy." said Suigetsu who was more creeped out by Orochimaru than usual.

"It does not take much to unsettle you Suigetsu, why not just be patient and leave everyone else alone." said Jugo as he was more of a fan of a quiet environment where Suigetsu kept his mouth shut.

Naruto and his team arrived at the opposite end of the Land of Earth's north-western border as evening came in during their sixth day on the journey.

"This is it, everything we have been preparing for up to this moment is now coming to fruition, be on guard and bring your A-game." said Shikamaru as he and the others were walking a large plateau of stone, with one last mountain range in front of them, this one surrounded by what appeared to be tombstones.

"Is that a grave site of some kind, what could it be doing all the way out here, there are no other villages around, could it be in relation to this Lazarus place?" asked Sai with a confused tone.

"That could be a possibility, but the only things that matters now is finding this Apathetic Judge and seeing what he desperately wants." said Naruto with a determination to end his journey quickly.

"I will be sure to send world to Kakashi once we discover the location of the leader of Lazarus, so that way he can notify the other four Kage as well." said Sakura.

"That is a good idea, though someone else may have already taken care of that." said Sai.

"I have a feeling that the Shinobi Alliance will need all of the help it can get, because something big is coming, it is more than just this meeting with Naruto, I believe, in fact I dread to see what this Apathetic Judge is even about to be honest with you, just thinking about what he or it could be brings nothing but sadness to my psyche." said Shikamaru to the rest of his team-mates.

"Me too, that could be the reason I felt off here lately, something is up with this Lazarus city, and in a few hours, we will finally see what it is!" yelled Naruto as he was getting more excited by the second.

Orochimaru and his team had arrived at a cave located slightly off the main path of the beach that they were traveling on.

"We will rest one final night, and then tomorrow morning, we arrive in Lazarus, it is as simple as that." said Orochimaru with a stern tone.

"Finally, this fucking journey took forever if you ask me." said Suigetsu as his legs were sore from the whole fiasco.

"There you go complaining like a big ass baby again, knock it out!" yelled Karin angrily at Suigetsu.

"I can sense something serene and intoxicating in the area around fifty miles away from us." said Jugo to Orochimaru.

"I know, I sense it too, that is my brother, and he is my keeper, until now that is, I will be sure to put my own misery to an end after waiting for decades to bring this dream to fruition, why I even dreamed about it back when Kaguya sealed everyone within the Shinju, but now it shall be a reality." said Orochimaru as he closed his eyes and sat in the corner of the cave, with a slightly worried expression of the events to come.

 **-To be Continued next time with Chapter 030...-**


	30. Hell is What They Raised!

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 030: Hell is What They Raised!  
**  
Evening had came forth on the sixth day since Naruto and his team had left Konoha and began their mission.

"Alright folks, we will be camping out here for the night, this is the last night we will probably be able to take it easy though, man what a drag." exclaimed Shikamaru to the rest of his team.

"You sound distressed Shikamaru, but I guess that is because you are taking this mission seriously, as am I, even though I miss Ino more and more as the days go on." said Sai as he could identify with what Shikamaru was feeling.

"Well, it has been a while since I have seen Hinata as well, but the sooner we get to Lazarus tomorrow, the sooner we can return home and forget all of this mess." said Naruto with a sense of urgency.

"This area by the lake should do fine for a camping spot, don't worry about tomorrow until it comes, I faced Jesei and I know what kind of person he is trying to present himself to be, I almost felt sorry for him, but I cannot forgive that motherfucker with the brown hair for that Wood Release jutsu that he used to kill off those innocent villagers." said Sakura with an angered tone.

"Now that you bring it up, how is it that he was able to use the Wood Release ninjutsu, was he experimented on by someone in Lazarus, Yamato and Danzo were as well, but theirs was not on par with the edo Madara or the First Hokage." said Sai.

"He could have copied the ability via some kind of surgery or bio implementation, but he might be a true heir to the ability for all we know." said Shikamaru as he laid out his bedroll and sat on it, deciding to take a smoke break.

"Even if he is a true Senju, I will not let him or any of those others continue to undo what the Allied Shinobi Forces have worked so hard to achieve." said Naruto as he laid down on the grass and looked up into the late evening sky.

"Still, you have to wonder what they are trying to do, or even why no one has ever heard of this Lazarus place before, were they hiding in the fog of war for the past thirty or so years, or have they simply been waiting for no other factions to exist before they began to act?" asked Sai with a sense of worry.

"No matter how many times that question is asked, the only sure fire way to know is to meet with this boss of the Knights of Dawn, I will be sure to give him the questionnaire of his life." said Naruto with a smile.

"You sure look peaceful Naruto, I am glad you can relax even in a moment like this, you deserve it after what has happened in the past four years." said Sakura as she smiled thinking of all of the heroic deeds that Naruto has accomplished.

"It is not just me Sakura, the rest of you were there too, we should all be at peace tonight, don't let any ill wills keep you up too late, just fall to sleep thinking of the mission ahead." said Naruto as he seemingly fell sound to sleep.

"That does sound like a good idea, I am hitting the hey too, but if anything makes a move, even the slightest, I will be as wide awake as one can me." said Shikamaru as he and the rest of his team laid low for the night, eagerly awaiting the arrival of the next morning.

Elsewhere in Iwagakure, Ohnoki had received word of the events in Amazeo Village, as well as the death of Joakim and his battalion.

"So, you are sure they have all perished?" asked Ohnoki to one of the Hidden Stone's ANBU.

"Yes Lord Tsuchikage, all of the men, women, and children in Amazeo have been killed, and most likely by that group that you told us all about three days ago." said the man recalling when he heard of the news that Sasuke relayed to the Tsuchikage.

"This is just not right, all of those people, dead, I don't care if they were not part of my village or not, they will pay for this, Kurotsuchi, Akatsuchi, come in here now!" yelled Ohnoki as the two shinobi ran into the office at a great pace.

"What is it now, ya old fart, there is nothing else we can do about what happened in Amazeo until the next Five Kage Meeting is commenced." said Kurotsuchi to her grandfather.

"Now that you mention it, when is the next summit, tomorrow, next week, next month?" asked Akatsuchi with curiosity.

"Well, after learning that these freaks could be in our own Land of Earth, I am scheduling it two days from now, and the other Kages have all agreed to it." said Ohnoki.

"I see, and you will be wanting us to come with you again, right?" asked Kurotsuchi to her grandfather.

"Yes, after hearing that the Mizukage was attacked by one of those Knights of Dawn, we all have to be prepared for the worst, especially with the concern of who their leader might be." said Ohnoki as a drop of sweat fell down his brow.

"Well then, it is settled, I will report back to my post and inform everyone there, good luck you three." said the Iwa ANBU member as he ran off towards the outskirts of the village.

"Let's get all of our reports over the past week collected, two days goes by quickly at my age." said Ohnoki with a sense of duty.

In Konohagakure, Hinata had finished washing her clothes, and decided to sit outside on the bench in front of her and Naruto's home.

"It seems like forever since you left, I just hope that you are doing alright, Naruto, six days have now passed, hopefully you will be back within the next week." thought Hinata to herself as she looked up into the night sky thinking of Neji, and her sister, Hanabi who was away on a mission.

"Is everything alright?" asked Konohamaru as he sat down on the bench next to the one Hinata was at.

"Oh, you miss Naruto too, it seems like forever since he left, and we don't know what kind of trouble he could be in." said Konohamaru with worry.

"Hey, you should have more confidence in your rival, he will be alright, Shikamaru, Sakura, and Sai are with him, and I heard Sasuke and Killer Bee will be helping out as well." said Hinata with a tone of optimism.

"Heh, you are right, I don't know what I was thinking, but I have also began to miss Hanabi as well, do you know when she is coming back?" asked Konohamaru with a slightly more upbeat demeanor.

"Tomorrow at the latest as far as I know, she sure does talk a lot about you to me, she has nothing but good things to say about you." said Hinata with a smile towards Konohamaru.

"Really, she said that, and here I thought I was no good for her, that I was just a third rate ninja, but ever since becoming a Chunin, I have been working hard to become a Jonin by next year on my sixteenth birthday, and then I will never let anything happen to her." said Konohamaru with a smile.

"That sounds just like something Naruto would say, and I believe you." said Hinata.

"Thanks, I am going to go wait for her by the village gate, even if it takes another whole day, see ya later." said Konohamaru as he ran off towards the eastern gate of the village.

"Be careful out there Naruto, don't get too reckless." thought Hinata as she went back inside thinking of the next time she would get to see her husband again.

Sasuke and Bee had arrived at the border of the Land of Earth from the Northwest region, putting them only one day behind Naruto and his team.

"Man I am beat right now, I am more worn out than a coffee-deprived owl, fool, ya fool!" said Bee with a eccentric tone as he sat down next to a waterfall pouring from the bank of a nearby ocean as Sasuke sat down in front of a tree trunk.

"We will be there soon as well, we have not ran into anymore trouble since we encountered that piece of shit back in Kirigakure, so maybe they got our message." said Sasuke to Bee.

"I have the best Wine one could hope to find, want to sip it with me and unwind?" asked Bee to the somber Sasuke.

"No thanks, I need to meditate for a while, there is something else on my mind, you just stay here and relax, but try not to get too drunk, we will need to head out early tomorrow." said Sasuke to Bee as he walked up the bank of the nearby ocean and sat on the beach.

"He is right Bee, you do not want another hangover now do you?" asked Gyuki to Bee in his mind.

"Man always getting in on my mind, you really know how to ruin a good time." said Bee to Gyuki as he only took a few sips out of the bottle before laying back and thinking of what he and Sasuke would be doing the next day.

In Kumogakure, A and Darui were discussing the plans of what actions to take, after just receiving a message from Ohnoki regarding the Amazeo Village Massacre.

"What a bunch of scumbags we are dealing with this time boss, they raised hell in the Land of Earth." said Darui as he was taking a sip out of his large coffee cup.

"Hell is exactly what they raised, and if they are closest to Ohnoki and his village, then we must send some of our own forces over there to assist Iwagakure in a possible invasion, just like the one that Konoha had over a week back." said Raikage with concern.

"I am worried that Bee and Sasuke get captured by the scary boss of these Warriors of Eve." said Omoi as he walked in half awake, straight into the middle of the Raikage's office.

"It is the Knights of Dawn, Omoi, and I would not worry about those two, Iwagakure is part of the alliance, and the Land of Earth is also part of it, we must make sure no more innocent lives are taken." said Raikage to Omoi.

"I know, I know, but you know how I worry about things, at least I have gotten more composed as of late." said Omoi as he sat down next to the water cooler in the Raikage's office.

"I don't like the idea of any unknown foe being in the shadows, I mean we don't even know who their leader is, he must be a drab man for sure." said Darui.

"Regardless, we hold the next Summit the day after tomorrow, and you two will be my escorts." said A.

"Gotcha' boss, I will be right with you." said Darui with a sluggish, but dutiful tone.

"I will too, just let me get all over this carbonated fruit water for the next day, it is great, it washes all of the worries away!" said Omoi with a joyful tone.

"I guess soft drinks are your salvation, hahahaha." laughed the Raikage as he got back to his own reports for the night.

The night passed by at a brisk pace as birds were chirping and mist was hovering over the forest where Naruto and his team had taken their rest for the night.

"I feel good this morning, it is still only five and the sun has not even risen yet." said Naruto as he did many push ups in a row to warm up for the inevitable meeting with the boss of Lazarus.

"I actually do not feel too bad this morning either, must have been those new cigars I brought with me, forgot I had them until yesterday though." chuckled Shikamaru as Sakura returned with a pitcher of water.

"Anyone feeling dehydrated besides me, this humid weather is horrible." said Sakura as she gulped half of it down.

"Oooh, I get the rest!" said Naruto as he snatched it from Sakura and gulped down the other half.

"I brought Sake with me so I am fine." said Shikamaru as he lit a cigar and looked over his plan of attack for the day.

"I kind of have some rose water from Ino's shop, but it tastes like heaven, I will be fine too." said Sai as he never thought to think that it was only for plants.

"Man, we must have been really dehydrated, eh Naruto, hehehe." laughed Sakura as she started to feel sick.

"Ughhh, maybe we drank it too fast, ughhh." said Naruto as he sat down to let his stomach settle for a while.

"Goodness, what a drag, once you two feel better, we will go over the plan to approaching Lazarus one last time, okay." said Shikamaru as Sakura sat down due to a stomach ache.

Tetsuga had returned to the Watered Grounds of the caverns on the far end of Lazarus, where it always rained, and fog surrounded the pine trees and other forestry around the area.

"Greshem, me and you will be looking for this poacher together, whoever he thinks he is, he cannot escape my sight." said Tetsuga with a calm tone.

"I would rather be at the hot springs right now, but oh well, finding this rogue spy is more pressing, it could be someone else trying to avenge Amazeo Village." said Greshem to Tetsuga as they walked through the pouring rain, and entered an oak forest, which was past the pine tree forest they had traversed prior.

"No, this is the same chakra signature I have been detecting, I just don't know who it exactly is, and I have also detected it before we invaded Amazeo, so that cannot be it, let's split up, you head out towards the Genesis Ocean to the north of here, I will continue to explore this area, Lehourihm and Dreatoen will be keeping watch at the cemetery as well." said Tetsuga to Greshem.

"Well, the rest of Camp Abraham are getting ready for another assault as I speak, so if we can find this spy quick enough, I can participate with them as well." said Greshem with a tone of excitement as he headed off towards the ocean.

"Heh, this will be fun, whoever this spy is, they dare trespass on Lazarus' holy territory, The Apathetic Judge will not tolerate this heathen act!" yelled Greshem as he did not want to let Tetsuga down.

"Lets' see, it is only a few more miles ahead, I am not a sensor, but I can track signs of intrusion down well, whoever could be around here, they will be at my mercy soon." said Greshem.

"Good, then you can be at mine." said a voice as Orochimaru appeared directly behind Greshem.

"You, are you the spy perhaps, huh, wait, what the hell are you?" asked Greshem as he fell to the ground, afraid of Orochimaru's presence.

"How is Hirudeguarn treating you lackeys, let me show you how he should be doing it." said Orochimaru as he walked towards Greshem with a devious look on his face.

"Multiple Explosive Specter Bombs Technique!" yelled Greshem as he created ethereal looking orbs that all surrounded Orochimaru.

"Alright you snake looking freak, I don't know what you are doing here, but the Apathetic Judge will not tolerate tresspassers and sinners like you!" yelled Greshem as all of the orbs around Orochimaru blew up, creating a decent sized crater.

"He, despicable goons, not worth the worry of our kind and wonderful god, and our leader's worry." said Greshem as he was about to continue on his trek to the Genesis Ocean to look for any more intruders.

"So, you think that I am a sinner and a heathen, that is a pretty accurate assessment, but as for you, I can be a good judge of things as well, and I can judge your fate right here you little rodent of talentless decree!" yelled Orochimaru as he raised his left hand towards Greshem with a look of joy on his face.

"If only your boss could see the look on your face right now, kukukuku!" laughed Orochimaru with glee.

"Look man, whatever you have planned, it will not work, do you hear me, and if you plan on getting any information out of me, then piss off, NOT TODAY!" yelled Greshem as he quickly picked up a a kunai that he dropped on the ground and without hesitation, slit his own throat with a smile on his face.

"I see, you would rather take your own life that spill out any information to me, hehehe, brother, you have some praise worthy associates indeed." said Orochimaru as Jugo, Karin, and Suigetsu also emerged from the nearby woods.

"I cannot believe he killed himself like that, how horrible." said Karin with a look of sadness on her face.

"Don't tell me you feel sorry for this shithead, he was going to die by Lord Orochimaru's hand, he just made it easier on himself." said Suigetsu.

"In any case, we are very close to Lazarus, and I sense a very powerful chakra nearby, much more potent than what this guy had." said Karin with a look of distress.

"Then we will all four fight it together." said Jugo.

"No, I will take care of this alone, for my brother must know that only I was enough to foil whatever worthless plan he has devised, you three can find that spy and see if he or she is on our side." said Orochimaru as he sealed Greshem's dead body into a scroll and headed towards the direction of the Watered Grounds.

"Well, the three of us have our own mission now, let's go." said Jugo with a stern voice.

"Whatever, maybe someone out here might be a Swordsman of the Mist!" said Suigetsu with glee.

"Still, I am sensing something much more deeper than just what everyone else believe to be on the surface, and I just don't think we are going to live guys." said Karin as she suddenly fell to her knees.

"Whoa, Karin, what the hell, are you okay?" asked Suigetsu with a worried tone.

"No, and even Lord Orochimaru will not be okay if he does not turn back now, I think I just sensed Hell, and Hell might just be what we have gotten ourselves into." said Karin as she was shaking with true fear.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 031...-**


	31. The Royal Parliament

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 031: The Royal Parliament**

Karin had sensed the chakra of a disturbing force within Lazarus, it's potency has caused her to fall to her knees.

"What do you mean, even Lord Orochimaru is in danger, that sounds like something farfetched to me!" said Suigetsu as he and Jugo helped Karin to her feet.

"I can tell that there is something going on in that city ahead of us, but I am not sure what it could be." said Jugo.

"Look, we need to at least look around this area, that man that offed himself must have known that we were going to capture him, hence why he committed suicide to avoid giving out any information." said Karin as she managed to get her wits back.

"You don't say, I cannot see anyone else around here, let's head towards the same direction as Orochimaru then, that is the only way to really tell what it going on that has you so creeped out." said Suigetsu who was trying to discern the fearful look in Karin's eyes.

"If things really do go bad, then at least we need to wait for Sasuke and Naruto to get here, that is what Lord Orochimaru told me anyway." said Jugo with a look of duty in his eyes.

"I guess so, but still we cannot get separated in a foreign territory, let's go." said Suigetsu to his two team-mates as they ran off towards the direction that Orochimaru was headed.

Naruto and his team had arrived at a cliff that was overlooking the city itself, as the sun had risen to reveal the vast forests and plains surrounding the outer gates.

"So, this is Lazarus, I see, we really have reached our end goal." said Shikamaru with a tone of uncertainty.

"It looks like a beautiful place, but we all know that those Knights of Dawn reside there, as well as this boss of theirs." said Sakura with a sweat drop falling down her right brow.

"I would look from the air, but we do not want to be detected yet, besides, it might be better to just travel by ground, we do not want to cause anymore trouble than we have to." said Sai cautiously.

"Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I am looking forward to meeting this man today, I want to see what he is all about, including the goal that he has concerning me." said Naruto with a tone of excitement.

"Before we do anything, we need to be sure on the route we are going to take to the city, do they only want Naruto to go, or will they allow us too?" asked Shikamaru.

"That is a good question, but of course we are not going to just let Naruto go in by himself." said Sakura thinking of Naruto's safety.

"Don't worry about me, I will use my shadow clones to supplement the numbers of need be, but for now we will travel as a group towards the nearest entrance, I can see two entrances in those gates from where we are currently standing." said Naruto as he and the others jumped down the cliff and landed on a grassy plain with several swamps and bridges leading to the western and eastern entrances to the city.

"Okay, we will take this route then, but Naruto, I want you to be on guard with your sensory perception ability, if anything strange is picked up, have Kurama tell us immediately." said Shikamaru to Naruto as the four leaf shinobi started their trek to the main gates.

"I got it, did you hear the plan Kurama?" asked Naruto to the fox within himself.

"Yes, but you be careful too Naruto, I can sense something very dangerous within that large castle that overlooks the city, you can see it too, I don't like the feeling of this chakra at all, dare I say it resembles the same potency as Kaguya's, maybe even worse." said Kurama with a worried tone.

"Really, is Kaguya their leader, did she escape from the alternate dimension, no, that cannot be right, I know that she is still sealed away, no one can break it, Sasuke would have noticed first." thought Naruto to himself as he looked around the swamp area that he and the others were traversing.

"No, I can at least confirm it is not her, but it is definatley this boss that those Knights of Dawn have spoken of, he or she must not be human." said Kurama to Naruto as the four man team closed in on the city gates.

Meanwhile, Killer Bee and Sasuke had approached the nearby valley that was surrounded by the Genesis Ocean which led to the western gate of Lazarus, going across the Sun-Braced Grove.

"So we are almost at the city of lights, man o man, things are starting to look bright, oh yeah!" proclaimed Bee with an excited tone as he and Sasuke were walking at a brisk pace through the valley which was composed of large mountains adorned with apple trees and various pine trees.

"Let's not be too brash, my Rinnegan is picking up Naruto, Sakura, Sai, and Shikamaru's chakra to the east of the city, and I can tell that Orochimaru and Taka had apparently also came along for the ride." said Sasuke to Bee with an annoyed expression.

"What's the matter my man, you do not like this others shady plans?" asked Bee to Sasuke as they continued to traverse the valley towards the Genesis Ocean.

"I would rather it had just been Naruto and his team out here, but I can guess why Orochimaru may have decided to go along as well, I just hope he is not planning on joining with his brother out there, if so, then I will kill him without hesitation." said Sasuke with an intense glare in his Mangekyou Sharingan.

"Bee, I can feel Kurama's chakra from within Naruto, it looks like you can finally meet him again, just don't be reckless out there, you know that your brother will give you the Iron Claw if you wander off aimlessly." said Gyuki to Bee within his mind.

"Check it fool, I will not do anything that would go against my bro's rule." said Bee with confidence

"We are almost out of this valley, and no intrusions from what I can tell, let's make sure it stays that way." said Sasuke who was observing the surrounding area with his Rinnegan.

Within the Castle of Leviticus, Antoine, Lunesto, and Lehourihm were overlooking the city with anticipation of Naruto's arrival.

"Oh wow, to think that the Golden Hero will be here any time is making me too excited, I can feel my heart race with anticipation, this will be spectacular!" said Lunesto with a look of utmost joy concerning his demeanor.

"Those three team-mates of his are coming along for the ride as well, I wounder how the big boss will react to this, I mean we only asked Naruto to come alone, not with these heathens that will only slow him down." said Antoine as he scoffed at the idea of anyone unworthy entering the city.

"Boss will not care, and neither should we, regardless, the more the merrier, we are going to be putting on the greatest show in the galaxy, why not have more spectators to see the power of our great leader and angel, Lord Hirudeguarn Naga." said Lehourihm as he stared over the horizon atop the castle with an emotionless expression.

"Fair enough, but I am just looking forward to seeing this for myself, let's go see the boss right away, I want to see what he has in plan for us." said Lunesto with excitement.

"I will contact the other Knights of Dawn, minus Tetsuga, because he requested to be allowed to continue tracking down that spy after all." said Antoine as he and Lunesto walked back into the top floor of the castle.

"Heh, I cannot wait, I can feel Xipe Totec's blood flowing through me, and once I get to head out towards my home village of Kumogakure, I will make sure that it will be all but standing." said Lehourihm as the large seven and a half foot man as Dreatoen came up from behind him.

"We are the royal parliament of his Majesty, The Apathetic Judge, we are to assure that those imbeciles do not harm the citizens of our great city, do you understand me Lehourihm Nante, your mission to Kumogakure comes later." said Dreatoen to Lehourihm with a fire in his eyes.

"Of course my brother in arms, I will only obey Hirudeguarn's utmost directive, nothing more, nothing less." said Lehourihm as he and Dreatoen also entered the castle.

Tetsuga was waiting for Greshem to return as he continued his search for the spy near the Watering Grounds.

"He should have been back by now, heh, the bastard must have either been captured, or he killed himself to prevent an information leak, if it is the latter, then he honored his viaduct well." thought Tetsuga to himself as the rain around him started to intensify.

"Wait, I can feel four more chakras heading my way, Hiding in Camouflage Technique." said Tetsuga as he turned transparent and his within a bushel of leaves.

"Either this spy has backup, or this is a separate party of worthless scum that has decided to trespass on a land not their own." thought Tetsuga as he prepared more hand signs.

"Scent Elimination Technique, and to follow up, Chakra Repression Technique, now not even the most skilled sensors on the planet will be able to detect me." thought Tetsuga as his cover was so concealed, it was as if he did not even exist.

Karin, Jugo, and Suigetsu had caught up with Orochimaru as they entered the Watering Grounds.

"So, you four decided to follow along after all, hehe." laughed Orochimaru as he could not seem to find the presence he was looking for.

"Hmmm, this is strange, I could feel a chakra nearby, but it vanished, completely without a trace." said Karin with a cautious tone.

"It could be one of those Knights of Dawn, it is hard to tell at this point." said Jugo as he looked around the rainy forests and caverns, searching for a presence.

"Maybe that man that killed himself was a subordinate to the chakra you felt in this area Karin, and since he never returned, this person could be on guard." said Suigetsu trying to make sense out of the situation.

"He could have a similar ability to you Karin, to wipe out his chakra signature, and even make himself seem non-existent, in any case be on guard, I feel someone else nearby as well, and I might know who it is." said Orochimaru with a grin.

Naruto and his team had arrived at the end of the swamp-covered area, and were within half-a-mile of the main gates of the city.

"We are almost there, just a little further and we can put this mission to action." said Naruto with exuberant joy.

"Be careful not to get too riled up, we don't want to start raising hell the moment we arrive in the city." said Sakura to Naruto.

"Yeah, the last thing we need is some more chaos before the action even begins, that would be a major drag." said Shikamaru.

"Hey, I see someone laying on the ground in front of us, see, right there on that bridge." said Sai as he noticed this anomaly in the corner of his eye.

"Huh, I see it too, it looks like a young woman, could she be hurt, let's go check on her!" said Sakura with a sense of panic as the four shinobi ran towards the girl.

"Is she a citizen of that city, or could she be from somewhere else, and has ended up lost?" asked Shikamaru with confusion as they approached the young girl with short blonde hair and a blue gown, resembling one a patient would wear at a hospital.

"Um, excuse me ma'am, are you alright?" asked Sakura as she and her team carefully approached the girl.

The girl did not utter a word, as she looked at the river beneath the bridge she was sitting on, staring into it without any acknowledgement of the leaf shinobi being in her presence.

"Hey, can you hear us, are you okay, how did you get here, do you live in that city?" asked Naruto with concern in his tone.

"They are all dead." uttered the girl in a soft, shaken tone as she continued to sit on the bridge with a dead, almost lifeless look in her eyes.

"What the hell, did she say they are all dead?" asked Sai who was taken by shock at the girl's words.

"Who is all dead, what happened here, what is going on?" asked Shikamaru as he approached the young woman.

"Please, do not go there, go back, you are going the wrong way." said the girl as she stood up in front of Shikamaru.

"Who did this, did someone hurt you?" asked Sakura who did not know what to think.

"He...he is a bad man, he is a very bad man." said the girl as she began to cry quietly, her tears falling out of her bright green eyes at great intervals.

"Someone did hurt you, I can see all kinds of scars on your arms and legs, was it one of those damn Knights of Dawn?" asked Naruto.

"For fuck sakes, go back now, do not let this happen to you!" yelled the girl as she pulled out a knife and held it towards her stomach.

"No, don't do that, there has to be another way, please!" yelled Sakura with fear of the girls well being.

"You are all going to die." said the girl nonchalantly as she rammed the knife towards her stomach, only for Naruto to grab her hand, and throw the knife away.

"No one is going to die on my watch, you just rest easy now, we will take care of the bastards who did this to you." said Naruto with much anger in his expression.

"Sakura, heal this girl and stay behind to look over her, Sai, Shikamaru stay here as well, I am going in alone, if these sick fucks want a meeting with me, it will be a meeting they will get!" said Naruto as he created four shadow clones to follow him into the city.

"I understand." said Sakura as she started to heal to injured girl.

"Please, find my family." said the girl as she fainted.

"We will stay back, but you be careful." said Sai to Naruto.

'I will find your family I promise, and don't worry about me Sai, I will handle this swiftly." said Naruto as he walked towards the eastern gate of Lazarus.

"What have we gotten ourselves into, this is crazy." thought Shikamaru to himself as Sakura had finished healing the girl.

"Let's just trust Naruto for now, I will have faith in him." said Sakura as she made sure that nothing else would happen to the injured young lady.

"Kurama, let's get ready to do this, that castle is our destination, the four of you, follow my lead." said Naruto to his shadow clones and Kurama respectively.

"I hear you Naruto, but still, be careful, this man that the girl back there spoke of, may very well be this boss of those Knights of Dawn, and if he really did do that, he may do the same to you." said Kurama to Naruto within his subconscious.

"I know, time to see what this man is all about once and for all." said Naruto valiantly as he had finally entered the eastern part of the city.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 032...-**


	32. A Man Behind the Shadowed Hell

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 032: A Man Behind the Shadowed Hell**

Naruto had arrived in the city of Lazarus with his shadow clones, as Sakura, Sai, and Shikamaru stayed behind to tend to the young woman's wounds in the swamp area outside of the city.

"Huh, there sure are a lot of fancy looking buildings around here, and a lot of people too." said Naruto to himself as he walked into the suburbs of Lazarus.

"Naruto, be on guard, we do not know what kind of traps those freaks could have set in the city, look out for anything unusual." said Kurama to Naruto.

"I know, I will not be caught off guard so easily, let's ask around and get to know more about this place." said Naruto as he approached an elderly woman who was hanging her clothes on a clothes hanger outside her house.

"Um, excuse me ma'am, could you tell me a little about this place, I am new here, and I would like to find out some more about Lazarus." said Naruto to the elderly lady.

"Huh, you new here, our you trespassing on our land perhaps?" asked the older lady with a serious tone.

"Uh, no, I am just here to visit with the Knights of Dawn, they have asked for a meeting with me personally, my name is Naruto Uzumaki." said Naruto as he introduced himself to the lady.

"Did you say Naruto Uzumaki, hey kids, come and look, the Golden Hero is here!" proclaimed the elderly woman as three kids came running out of the old lady's house with excitement.

"Did she just call me the golden hero too?" asked Naruto to himself as the three kinds approached him.

"Wow, you are Mr. Naruto, we have heard great legends about you from the higher ups of Lazarus, we knew you would come, we are glad to see you!" said one of the kids with an excited tone.

"Yeah, grandma always told us that Hirudeguarn was looking for a golden hero, and that he was destined to come here some day." said another one of the kids.

"Destined to come here, huh?" asked Naruto with confusion as he looked around the suburbs of Lazarus.

Most of the buildings were made of green-looking marble and many gardens surrounded the area, with a lot of citizens working in the fields, with a large fountain in the middle of the area, adorned with the head of a sea-serpent like creature.

"This is quite the place, how long have you guys lived here?" asked Naruto to the old lady and her three grandchildren.

"I have been here for the past ten years, we were offered a home after our own was destroyed by a group of bandits, we had nowhere to go, until the Knights of Dawn arrived and fought off the bandits for me, though my daughter was killed before they could arrive." said the older lady with a saddened tone.

"I see, is everyone in this village from a former town that was destroyed in some way?" asked Naruto with curiosity.

"I think so, some are radicalists that worship the Apathetic Judge, Hirudeguarn, while others like me were just offered a place to come to after our own was destroyed." said the older lady.

"Okay, thanks for taking the time to tell me these things, I have to go now, take care." said Naruto as he waved at the old lady and the three kids before walking further into the suburbs.

"No, thank you Naruto for finally coming here, you have made our dreams come true." said the youngest kid with joy.

"Now, you three leave him alone, go play somewhere, Naruto is busy right now." said the elder as she went back to washing her clothes.

"Heh, this place is like a orphanage for people with no homes, but don't be deceived Naruto, we both know the real secrets of this place." said Kurama to Naruto cautiously.

"I understand, my other clones are also around the suburbs as well, if any of them find something suspicious, they will relay it back to me." said Naruto as he had his sights set on the large castle hanging off the mountain range overlooking the city.

Sasuke and Bee had finally arrived outside of a place resembling a cemetery with many iron gates surrounding it.

"This must be one of the areas surrounding the city, I can feel Naruto's chakra as well, we will meet with him soon, but let's explore this place first, we might find something of value relating to this whole mess." said Sasuke as he was looking around the area for any of the Knights of Dawn.

"Yo check it, this cemetery gives off bad vibes, I just hope these buried folk are dead, not alive!" proclaimed Bee.

"Oh come on, you are not scared of a little graveyard, let's explore this place." said Sasuke to Bee as the two started to walk around the area which had around three hundred tombstones and a fountain in the middle, with many flowers in vases placed around the area.

"I am not scared, I am just worried about being found out, fool ya fool." said Bee to Sasuke.

"Hey, there is something glowing over there behind the furthest tombstone, let's go check it out." said Sasuke as he and Bee ran over to the furthest tombstone from the entrance to the cemetery.

Fog started to surround the area, as a gloomy feeling began to feel the air.

"Uh oh, do ya see that, we have done screwed up, some kind of trap must have been set." said Bee with shivers throughout his body.

"Calm down, it is just a theatrical display to scare off any trespassers, but we are not the common folk, now are we?" asked Sasuke as he saw a glowing sword laying beside the tombstone.

"This person's name was Rivoulzione, huh, maybe this glowing sword belonged to him, and right beside it is another tombstone, this one has the name Iris written on it." said Sasuke to Bee as the fog intensified.

"Hey Sasuke my man, I don't want to rain on your parade, but it looks like we have some company, looks like a tirade." said Bee with a worried tone.

Several undead corpses started to come from out of the ground where the tombstones were located, and each of the undead had maces and clubs in their rotting hands.

"Heh, look at that, another trap, some kind of reanimation jutsu no doubt, to trigger when someone approaches the golden sword, how quaint." said Sasuke as he pulled out his sword.

"Eh, oh well, come on Samehada, let's go wild, wheeeeee!" yelled Bee as he and Sasuke slowly walked towards the mob of around one hundred undead.

"I will take the lead, you follow behind." said Sasuke as he swiftly ran towards the undead with his sword in an offensive position.

"Oh man this is crazy bad, if I get bitten and turn into a zombie, that will not be rad." said Bee as he pulled out Samehada and swung it at ten undead creatures, cutting them all into pieces.

"I will make short work of these imbeciles." said Sasuke as he prepared handsigns with his only arm.

"Fire Release: Great Dragonfire Technique!" yelled Sasuke as he launched three large fireballs that obliterated fifty of the corpses at once.

"My turn now, Lariat!" yelled Bee as he clotheslined five more zombies at a time, sending their heads flying into the fog above.

"Let's put an end to this Bee." said Sasuke as he and Bee channeled Lightning chakra through themselves, and released it in a glowing light, which then flew towards the remaining undead, destroying them.

"That was quite the light show, I bet those zombies wish they would have never bothered to exchange blows with us, oh yeah." said Bee as he put Samehade on the strap on his back.

"I have seen enough, let's go find Naruto now." said Sasuke as he could also feel Sakura's presence outside of the city.

Meanwhile, inside of the Castle of Leviticus, seven of the Knights of Dawn were gathered around a large table with coffee cups and scrolls laid across.

"The boss will be outside of his quarters shortly, he will give us directives on how to act next, Tetsuga is still in the Watering Grounds looking for the spy, so he wished to be left alone for now." said Andarius as he took a sip of his coffee.

"Damn, the boss has not been out of his room for days, I wonder what he was doing in there anyway?" asked Lunesto with curiosity as he did not seem to like the flavor of the coffee too well.

"I tried to make it the best I could, I guess not having any coffee creamer came back to bite me in the ass after all." said Antoine to Lunesto with an apologetic tone.

"Forget the damn coffee, Naruto is in the city as we speak if the estimated time of his arrival is correct at least." said Jesei with a serious tone.

"I cannot wait to see him, I will show him my torture chamber, bet he would like that, heehehehe." laughed Zaire.

"Someone triggered the trap in the cemetary as well, probably more backup from Naruto's end." said Lehourihm to the others.

"Sasuke and Killer Bee, they have also decided to join Naruto on this little escapade, but no matter, the greater the audience we have, the more prevalent our own agenda can unfold." said Dreatoen with a malicious grin on his face.

"Enough bickering, the boss is coming." said Zaire as the lights in the large room surrounded by stained glass windows dimmed, leaving only a little light to fill the room.

"Pleasure to have you in our presence, Lord Hirudeguarn." said Jesei as he and the other Knights of Dawn closed their eyes and lowered their heads to the table.

A loud series of footsteps could be heard as a throne made of marble resembling a Cerberus sat in front of the table where the Knights of Dawn were seated.

A large man, around nine and a half feet tall, wearing a suit and a hat resembling the attire of an old western mortician was slowly walking towards the throne that was in front of the Knights.

He had bulging muscles that showed through his black suit and red tie, which had kanji written on it, and he had a cigar in his mouth as the large man sat down in front of the Knights of Dawn, with two green serpentine pupils surrounded by bloodshot eyes and red scarlea. He had broad facial features, a large jawline, prominent creases and cheekbones, and many wrinkles that covered the old giant's face.

"Naruto is here sir, and he has company with him, I am not sure what our next move is, but could you enlighten us on it?" asked Antoine with as he shivered at the presence of the behemoth of a man that sat in front of him.

"I was gazing at the stars in eve's past and saw the world crying tears of pain and constant suffering, to cleanse the blood of this scarred world and to deliver the interim of Mankind's parabola is the purpose of our establishment." proclaimed the man with a deep, booming voice as he glared at his subordinates with a look of indifference.

"Yes sir, that is the directive that you have given us all." said Jesei with a tone of joy.

"My brothers, all of our waiting is over, this is the new age of mankind, rejoice children of Rah'Zuh, the blood of your oppressors will not be soon forgotten, for now it is the death of fear, and the birth of renewal." said the large man with a grin on his face.

"It is a pleasure to be in your presence Lord Hirudeguarn." said Zaire with a humbling tone.

"Let Naruto come to the castle, I will not be here to greet him personally though, that will be for later when I put him to my test." said Hirudeguarn as he closed his eyes, and could see around the entire city of Lazarus.

"Sasuke, Bee, Sakura, Sai, Shikamaru, Orochimaru, Karin, Suigetsu, Jugo, a good turnout, I am glad to know that my message was delivered with much success, but that is only the beginning, Zaire, I want you to tell Naruto of the details of when his battle with me is to take place, as well as the location, and make sure that he stays in the city, do not show any hostility to his friends either, make them feel at home, just as I took you all in." said Hirudeguarn as he got up out of his throne and walked towards the back door of the room.

"You are my sacred missionaries, my voices to the public, you are to convey my will and do the work of god, to ensure that peace is brought to my original vision, and to ensure that reason reigns above ignorance, until we meet again, enact my will upon this worthless damned world." said Hirudeguarn with a fierce tone as the stone around the room crackled at the presence of the large man.

"Thy kingdom come, thy will be done." said Dreatoen as he and the other Knights also got up out of their seats and left the room through the front door.

"Heh, it looks like it is my job to convince Naruto to stay here, oh well, I was looking forward to capturing some more fucking Stone shinobi and torture them." laughed Zaire with an insane look of murder in his eyes.

"No, you will listen to our leader's decree, do as you were commanded." said Lehourihm to Zaire with a stern voice.

"I will, my brother, I will." said Zaire as he calmed down and walked down the flight of stairs that led to the main entrance of the castle.

"The rest of you, hang low for a while and await any further directive from Hirudeguarn, we will leave this to Zaire for now." said Dreatoen as he walked into the back entrance of the castle into the catacombs of the facility.

Orochimaru and Taka had been looking for the chakra that Karin had detected from earlier, but could not seem to come up with a body.

"Whoever it is that is hiding from us is certainly a skilled man, even I cannot detect him." said Orochimaru as he looked around the rainy forest surrounded by caverns, but was unable to find anyone.

"My Mind's Eye of the Kagura has not failed me before, but I had honestly lost track of the chakra that I detected here, I cannot explain it." said Karin with a puzzled look on her face.

"Is it the same chakra that you said would put us all in dread?" asked Suigetsu recalling Karin's panic from earlier.

"No, while this chakra that is hiding from us is decently powerful, it is not the one that I spoke of." said Karin as she began to sweat thinking of what she detected earlier.

"You must have caught a glimpse of my brother, the leader of the Knights of Dawn, hehehe, I guess we know what our next destination is then." said Orochimaru as he decided to abandon looking for the man hidden in the forest for now.

"So, we are just going to ignore the person hidden in this forest and leave?" asked Jugo to Orochimaru.

"Yes, it is of no concern to me at the moment, for the only reason I have came here is to meet with my brother, face to face." said Orochimaru to Taka.

"Hehehe, so that is his plan, well who am I to stop you four." said Tetsuga as he made himself visible to Orochimaru and his team.

"So, you are one of the Knights of Dawn after all." said Orochimaru with a calm look on his face.

"Who am I to stop the brother of my holy leader in a time like this, please, feel free and go meet him for yourself, your three friends are welcome as well." said Tetsuga with a grin.

"Huh, he is not going to try and stop us?" asked Suigetsu with confusion.

"No it doesn't look like it, but I think we better not go anyway." said Karin with the shivers.

"Now now, don't be afraid of our holy majesty, his will is to only see everyone on this world prosper, hehehe...hahahaha!" laughed Tetsuga as he walked towards Orochimaru with no fear in his heart.

"You are not the one who was spying on our city, and even though Greshem is dead, I will let that slide as well, go ahead and meet your brother Orochimaru, he has such sights to show you." said Tetsuga to Orochimaru with a tone of great anticipation.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 033...-**


	33. A Duel With Tetsuga Marshlo

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 033: A Duel with Tetsuga Marshlo**

Tetsuga had made an offer to Orochimaru and his team to meet with Hirudeguarn, after making his presence to them known.

"I am being serious, your brother would like to meet with you, I am sure he has such wonderful sights to show you." said Tetsuga to Orochimaru as the rain in the cave grounds started to pour down heavier.

"Hehehehe, is that so, well I decide when it is time to deal with trash like him, as for you, give me a reason why we should not just kill you right now?" asked Orochimaru as he glared his eyes at Tetsuga.

"Now now, let's not do anything we will both regret, you came out here for a reason, it would be best if you stuck to that reason, and not get side tracked." said Tetsuga with a grin.

"You are just counting on your boss to make everything better aren't you, well he is not here right now, and you are all alone." said Orochimaru as he walked closer to Tetsuga.

"I see, the old pressure game, eh?" asked Tetsuga as he also started to slowly walk towards Orochimaru.

"Are these two going to fight right here, at this time?" asked Suigetsu to himself.

"Well, if we can capture one of these so called Knights, then we can get a lot of intel from him." said Jugo.

"If this is really worth it, but whatever Orochimaru wants to do, I sure will not be the one to get in his way." said Karin with a nervous tone.

"Ahh, come on, look at your three subordinates, they are scared shitless, just turn back and resume your cute little journey, you don't want to be doing this." said Tetsuga as he tightened his fists and was prepared to do battle.

"At least you are not afraid, but that is a shame, when your prey is scared, the hunt is always more enjoyable." said Orochimaru towards Tetsuga.

"Well, in this area, you are the prey, and I am the executioner of all things unsightly to my majesty, and you fit the bill to perfection." said Tetsuga with a mocking tone.

"Just for that, I will not let you suffer when I kill you, Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!" yelled Orochimaru as he had several venomous serpents emerge from his sleave that honed in towards Tetsuga's location.

"Now this is a dance, how amusing." said Tetsuga as he quickly jumped above the serpents and landed on top of the nearest pine tree behind him.

"Well, at least your reaction time is on par, but that will not be enough." said Orochimaru as he jumped high in the air and dove towards Tetsuga.

"Myriad of Serpentine Spears!" yelled Orochimaru as over fifty serpents emerged from his mouth and quickly struck Tetsuga, knocking the pine tree he was on down in the process.

"You had nowhere to go this time, although I presume you are still alive." said Orochimaru as he looked around the rainy forest in search for Tetsuga's presence.

"I did not expect to encounter you of all people, this is very grand indeed, I was rather bored after I got back from slaughtering the villagers of Amazeo, maybe you can entertain me for a while." said Tetsuga as he emerged from behind one of the many bushes that covered the area.

"Well this time you will have to face someone who can defend themselves, and you chose the wrong opponent today." said Orochimaru as he started walking slowly towards Tetsuga again.

"Correct me if I am wrong, but you were the one who confronted me, oh well, I get what you mean." said Tetsuga as he took a scroll out of from under his suit's jacket and released it, causing a light brown- bladed sword to be summoned.

"Ikite Iru, with this holy weapon, your time in this life is going to be reduced." said Tetsuga as he ran towards Orochimaru at high speeds.

"My Sword of Kusanagi will make short work of that pathetic weapon of yours." said Orochimaru as he quickly pulled his weapon from out of his mouth and proceeded to run towards Tetsuga, with his blade drawn in front of him.

The two shinobi clashed their blades and quickly jumped back about ten feet from one another.

"So, this is going to be a duel of blades, now I am interested." said Suigetsu with an excited tone.

"I hope that Orochimaru can finish this soon, I am not liking this place at all." said Karin as she made sure to keep her distance from the battle.

"With Orochimaru taking this serious, it will not last long." said Jugo as he was watching the battle calmly.

"With three spectators here, this will put pressure on me to perform at my highest level." said Tetsuga as he raised Ikite Iru into the air and swung the blade towards Orochimaru.

"Yes, these three can be the ones who bury you once I am finished here." said Orochimaru as he clashed his sword of Kusangai with Tetsuga's blade once again.

The two continued to clash swords with one another, cutting down many pine trees in the process.

"It would seem we have a draw, how quaint." said Tetsuga with a sly look about him.

"Maybe at face value, but I will take initiative to finish this now." said Orochimaru as he extended his sword, causing it to reach out and pierce Tetsuga in the chest.

"Ugh, I see, your sword has some special attributes to it as well." said Tetsuga as he turned into a collection of mud that dispersed into the ground.

"Heh, an Earth Clone, how amusing." said Orochimaru as Tetsuga reappeared unharmed in front of him.

"Shadow Clone Technique." said Tetsuga as he created another physical copy of himself, also holding the same blade.

"Heh, you made a nice duplicate for me to kill!" yelled Orochimaru as he ran towards Tetsuga and thrusted his blade into the shadow clone, causing it to disperse.

"Good work, that distraction came in handy." said Tetsuga as he slashed Orochimaru's leg clean off his body with a swift maneuver, and then jumped back to keep his distance.

Orochimaru's body turned into a pile of snakes, before also reappearing before Tetsuga.

"I knew it would not be that easy, but come on, isn't this duel getting a little drab, you have your full power before you, why not show me what Lord Hirudeguarn's little brother has to offer?" asked Tetsuga with a smile on his face.

"Okay, if you wish to die so soon." said Orochimaru as he prepared handsigns, while looking at Tetsuga with an intense glare.

"Oh shit, he is getting serious now, everyone stand back." said Suigetsu as he braced himself.

"Wind Release: Razor Serpent Cutlass." proclaimed Orochimaru as he released a high fluctuation of wind in the shape of three large swords that traveled at high speeds.

"That is more like it." said Tetsuga as he was cut into three pieces by the great offensive power of Orochimaru's jutsu.

"It has been so long since I have been able to battle in a traditional sense, let's not have this end so soon." said Orochimaru with a tone of joy.

"What, did he win already?" asked Karin as she was looking around the now deforested area.

"Well, no regards for the environment eh?" asked Tetsuga as he emerged from the pile of wood that was scattered across the ground.

"Your timing with the Body Replacement is decent, but I will not hold back again." said Orochimaru as he prepared another jutsu to cast at Tetsuga.

"Earth Release: Scattering Serpentine Sealing Spikes!" exclaimed Orochimaru as many sharp spikes shaped like serpents erupted out of the ground piercing Tetsuga's legs and rendering him unable to move.

"This jutsu also acts as a seal, you can no longer move, and that blade of yours is also useless." said Orochimaru to Tetsuga.

"I guess it is over now, he did not seem to use a substitution this time around." thought Jugo to himself.

"Once I start my battle, I finish until the bitter end." said Tetsuga as he broke free of the sealing spikes of earth, with blood dripping heavily from his legs.

"Huh, he was pierced by the jutsu directly, it was not a clone this time, how could he have broken free with such ease?" asked Orochimaru to himself as he remained calm none the less.

"No pain, no gain, they always said, my time in Iwagakure toughened me up some, but my training with the wonderful and pure prince of Heaven has allowed me to rise to an even fuller level of perception." said Tetsuga as his wounds did not appear to phase him.

"Ikite Iru: Tractor Beam Gravitation." said Tetsuga as he held up his blade, with a glow illuminating the weapon.

"I don't know what these theatrics of yours are for, but in the condition you are in, there will be no escape from this battle." said Orochimaru with laughter.

"Then, try avoiding what you cannot understand." said Tetsuga as his blade emitted strong gravitational waves that began to pull Orochimaru and the members of Taka towards him.

"Eh, what the hell, we are being pulled in towards that guy, what the fuck?" asked Suigetsu as he was trying to fight the gravitational pull of Tetsuga's blade.

Jugo had transformed his right arm to a large wing and grabbed Karin and Suigetsu, preventing them from being pulled any further towards the Knight.

"Jugo, thanks, I could not move at all." said Karin with a panic in her tone.

"So you want to pull me in with that little jutsu of yours, fine have me!" yelled Orochimaru as he jumped into the gravitational force and produced many blades out of his body.

"Heh, you are full of surprises, having the mechanics of my jutsu work against me." said Tetsuga as Orochimaru collided with Tetsuga, and the swords that stuck out of the serpentine man piercing him.

"I can summon many blades of the Kusanagi to protrude out of me at a moments notice, keeping a distance is a must with me, yet you wished to fight up close and personal, a deadly miscalculation for you, and one you could not afford to make." said Orochimaru as Tetsuga fell to the ground with many wounds all over his body.

"I was counting on that, you see the more I figure out about you, the easier this battle shall become!" yelled Tetsuga as he jumped to his feet, despite the many stab wounds all over his body.

"This guy just will not die, he is getting really annoying." said Suigetsu with anger.

"I guess you are a glutton for punishment, Tetsuga." said Orochimaru as the blades protruding from his body came out and hovered into the air.

"Well, I do love battle, war, I love it all." said Tetsuga as he made a gesture of confrontation towards Orochimaru.

"Death is my favorite personally." said Orochimaru as all of the blades hovering above him all honed in towards Tetsuga.

"Ikite Iru: X10 Gravity Radius Orb!" yelled Tetsuga as his blade started to glow yet again, causing all of Orochimaru's swords to fall to the ground.

"Huh, I cannot stand, what the fuck?" asked Suigetsu as he plummeted to the ground.

"This jutu is similar to the one from earlier, but instead of drawing us in, he is increasing the gravity in the area to push us down." said Jugo as he was also struggling to stand.

"I feel like I am going to be crushed, I cannot breathe well." said Karin as she was being strangled under the force of the gravity.

"I see, you increased the gravity of this area by ten times it's normal level, and it appears to be a circular area as well." said Orochimaru as he was still able to stand, yet with difficulty.

"I am not affected by the increase of gravity, and the thirty meter radius of the jutsu makes escape an impossible feat, though the fact that you can still stand is somewhat admirable." said Tetsuga as the trees and caves in the surrounding area crushed under the weight of the gravity.

"But if it is only ten times the norm, then it is not too bad." said Orochimaru as spat out a large white serpentine version of himself, that appeared to not be hindered by the gravity.

"Changing shape to deal with the situation, a good move indeed, I am at a lost of what to do now, hehehehe." laughed Tetsuga as Orochimaru had assumed his White Snake Form and charged towards Tetsuga at a quick pace.

"Your movement speed is even the same in this form." said Tetsuga as Orochimaru swallowed him whole.

"You are in my dimension now, all things you have clung to in your former life are about to become foreign to you now!" yelled Orochimaru as Tetsuga stood within Orochimaru's dimension where he used to perform his Body Transfer Ritual.

"Trying to take my body, eh?" asked Testuga as the area around him turned into three large, dark serpentine creatures.

"I have no use for that jutsu anymore, this is merely your burial site." said Orochimaru as he reappeared in the dimension in his original form again.

"That gravity altering jutsu of yours will not have an effect here, this little game is over." said Orochimaru as he started to run towards Tetsuga.

Outside, Suigetsu, Karin, and Jugo noticed that the gravity returned to normal, as they were able to stand on their feet with ease again.

"Did you see that, Orochimaru transformed and swallowed that freak whole, hehehe, he is as good as dead now." said Suigetsu with relief.

"Thank goodness, I thought I was going to die for a minute under all of that pressure." said Karin who was still shaken up.

"Something does not feel right though, I cannot tell what it is, but I can feel it." said Jugo with a worried tone in his voice.

In Orochimaru's dimension, Tetsuga was surrounded by the three large demonic serpents, as Orochimaru was running towards him, with Kusanagi in tow.

"From a common dweller's standpoint, I have lost this battle, but from a true human's perspective, this is the ultimate opportunity." said Testuga as he raised his sword and released an aura that teleported him out of the dimension.

"What, he was able to escape, does that sword of his have Space-Time ninjutsu capabilities as well?" asked Orochimaru who was astounded by the feat.

Testuga emerged outside in the Watering Grounds, right in front of Taka, with a look of malice in his eyes.

"Huh, how did he escape from that?" asked Suigetsu with a shocked expression.

"Rah'Zuh's children are not bound by dimensions, of course had I not kept my sacred sword in hand, I would be dead, but no matter, time for you three to die." said Tetsuga as he ran towards Taka with his sword.

"Enough, let's go greet Naruto." said Zaire as he suddenly appeared between Taka and Tetsuga.

"Who the hell is this guy?" asked Karin with a worried tone.

"Another Knight of Dawn I suppose." said Jugo with a worried look.

"Damn, I hope Lord Orochimaru can get back here in time, we are as good as dead otherwise." said Suigetsu as he started shaking.

"Hehehe, you seem to have enjoyed yourself here Tetsuga Marshlo, let me heal those wounds of yours, you have always been too reckless in battle." said Zaire as he healed Tetsuga's numerous stab wounds without forming any hand signs.

"What, he healed that man without even touching him, what the fuck is this?" asked Karin to herself with great despair.

"Thanks, now that Naruto is here, this battle with Orochimaru does not mean anything to me anymore." said Tetsuga as he was fully healed of his injuries.

"So, you have backup after all." said Orochimaru as he emerged from his dimension, in Sage Mode.

"Huh, he looks different, what the hell?" asked Suigetsu.

"That is Lord Orochimaru's Sage Mode, the strongest in all of the land." said Jugo with a smile.

"Sage Mode, you can use that, this is troublesome indeed." said Tetsuga as he was sweating a bit from the occurrence.

"Hehehehe...Hahahahaha, this is perfect, I can drag this worthless piece of shit to Hirudeguarn's door as a prize, I don't care if you have Sage Mode or not, before me, you are just a fucking dog with no bark to go with his bite!" yelled Zaire as his eyes turned bloodshot, and his face growing into an expression of hysteria.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 034...-**


	34. Zaire's Torture Chamber

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 034: Zaire's Torture Chamber**

Zaire had made light of the fact that Orochimaru had return to the outer dimension in his Sage Mode, as he had healed Tetsuga of his injuries.

"You are always reckless during these fights, why not try to avoid things that you know are coming?" asked Zaire to Tetsuga.

"Eh, I was just excited that someone had actually showed up around here, after Greshem did not return, I figured it was that spy that I have been sensing, but Orochimaru and those other three showed up instead and next thing I know, we are engaged in battle, I was not complaining though." said Tetsuga to Zaire as they both directed their attention to Orochimaru.

"That is quite the confidence you two have now, but the powers of this form bring my true potential to light." said Orochimaru as he had a navel snake emerging from his stomach area, four horns coming out of his head, and the purple markings around his eyes extending to the sides of his face, hiss brill also covered his eyes.

"So that is Sage Mode, or at least Orochimaru's version of it, looks a lot like Kabuto if you ask me." said Suigetsu.

"To be honest I think this would be the perfect opportunity to really show these vagabonds some real hell, but if Naruto is here, no point in digging around the ditch, let's go." said Tetsuga to Zaire.

"You three leave us alone, or I will be the one you face next time, oh and you can deactivate that Sage Mode of yours, we are finished with this little game here." said Zaire to Orochimaru and Taka.

"What, they think they can just run away now that Naruto is here, what the hell is this about?" asked Suigetsu who was mad that Tetsuga was leaving before Orochimaru could fight in Sage Mode.

"Suigetsu you dumbass, this is a good thing, it means we can move on without possible dying." said Karin to Suigetsu.

"I doubt that, these two have some kind of plan going on around this area, we are still in harm's way." said Jugo to Karin and Suigetsu.

"Well, if you two have seen enough then I will be on my way to see Hirudeguarn at this time, that is unless you would like to stop me." said Orochimaru as he was still in Sage Mode, and analyzing Zaire and Tetsuga's actions.

"Nah, feel free to go see him, I tried to tell you that before, but you insisted on fighting instead, though with Zaire here, it makes sense that you would return to your original goal after all." said Tetsuga as he and Zaire quickly left the Watering Grounds, not worrying about Orochimaru or Taka in the process.

"So they are gone now, just like that, good riddance, at least we can proceed on with this stupid damn journey without any more scares, at least until we get to this Hirudeguarn guy." said Suigetsu with a tone of annoyance.

"Enough complaining, we will head to the northern part of the city's gates, then we will observe and see what those Knights of Dawn do about Naruto being in the city, once that decision is made, then we will search for anything of value and go directly to my brother." said Orochimaru as he exited Sage Mode and started to slowly walk towards the direction of the Sun-Braced Grove, with Taka directly behind him.

On the other side of the outer gates of the city, Shikamaru, Sakura, and Sai were tending to the young girl that Naruto had saved from committing suicide earlier.

"She is resting now, I guess she was one of the prisoners of this city, perhaps the trauma she experienced had drove her beyond her breaking point." said Sakura as she gazed over towards the large castle hanging on the mountain range, several miles from her location.

"The most important thing is that she is still alive, I mean it would have been terrible had Naruto not been here." said Sai with a worried tone.

"We need to see if there are any more people trapped in this village like this young lady here, of course we will have to wait for her to wake up, meanwhile we will have to see what Naruto does about this whole predicament, what a drag, I would rather personally deal with them." said Shikamaru to Sai and Sakura.

"Ohhhhh, where am I?" asked the girl as she had finally awoken.

"Relax, you are in good hands now trust me, my name is Sakura Haruno, and I have tended to your wounds, now I need you to tell me who did this to you, so that I can get a grasp of who may be behind this." said Sakura to the young lady.

"I was trapped in an underground series of tunnels, located under this large grassy plain where the climate is always sunny and bright, it is east of here, on the outside of these gates." said the girl as she could not stand up yet.

"I see, I am glad that you are feeling better mentally as well, just relax here, we have someone in there now who will take care of those freaks that did this to you." said Sakura with reassurance.

"I hope you are right." said the young woman with a worried look in her eyes.

"Now that the enemy knows we are here, I might as well use my Super Beast Scroll to fly in the air and see where this sunny plain area is that she had just spoken of, better than waiting here doing nothing." said Sai as he drew one large bird and hopped on top of it.

"That sounds good, but be careful, we don't know if something is waiting for us up in the air as well." said Shikamaru to Sai cautiously.

"I know, let me observe for an hour, and figure out the layout of this city, I will then draw it for reference, it will make navigating the surroundings much easier." said Sai to Shikamaru as he flew around two hundred feet into the air on his ink bird and started to observe the surrounding areas.

Sasuke and Bee had taken the golden sword from the cemetery after they had fought off the undead creatures that ambushed them, and have now arrived on the proximity of the Sun-Braced Grove, continuing their search for clues concerning the foe they were dealing with.

"Man after killing those stupid undead goons, if am just glad that we were not hung up to ties like balloons." said Bee as he was looking around the bright, sunny forest that surrounded the grassy plain that he and Sasuke were walking in.

"This place is much different from the past one, it is not dark and gloomy, at least those sunglasses if yours will come in handy now." said Sasuke to Bee in a joking manner.

"Hey man, protecting the eyes is the most important thing about being a shinobi, you should know, I mean there could be some kind of monster out here that wants to still my eyes." said Bee with an eccentric tone of fear.

"You really don't get out much anymore do you." said Gyuki to Bee in his mind with a facepalm.

"I don't sense any chakra signatures around here, although I can see feint footprints in the tall grass over there, it seems to lead into the northern area of that oak tree forest." said Sasuke to Bee as the two shinobi headed towards the tall grass to observe the foot prints.

"I see, there was someone coming and going through here, foot prints leading to and from this area, let's go see what this person was doing shall we." said Sasuke to Bee as the two ran towards the forest, following the direction of the footprints.

"If the enemy has any traps in store, then I am going to bust their shit up to even up the score." said Bee as he pulled out Samehada in preparations of any potential threat.

"I see, it is best to be ready for the worst at all times, it makes the realization much more easier to take in." said Sasuke as he had his Eternal Mangekyou activated, but his Rinnegan deactivated.

"Here we are in the forest, oh yeah, but the footprints seem to lead to that creek bed over there, not sure what that is about, oh yeah." said Bee to Sasuke.

"I can detect chakra signatures from below that creek bed, I bet their is an underground cave down there, in any case, do the honors Bee." said Sasuke to Bee.

"Samehada let's destroy this punk ass rock until we find the entrance." said Bee as he cracked the living weapon on the ground destroying the rock and water around the area.

"I see a hole over their, let's go Bee, it must be the entrance to the underground area where I sensed those chakra signatures." said Sasuke as he had the Golden Sword beside his own, strapped to his back.

Sasuke and Bee quickly ran over to the location of the entrance of the underground area that Bee had managed to uncover.

"It is large enough for at least three people to enter at once, must be some kind of tunnel that could lead into the city, perhaps it belongs to those Knights of Dawn." said Sasuke to Bee.

"I want to see what these freaks be hiding, maybe if we find something really cool like that sword, then it could be worth writing." said Bee as he and Sasuke started to carefully enter the underground tunnel that seemed to be dug at a slight angle is it had wooden steps that led down into the heart of the underground cave.

There were many multi-colored lights that hung on both sides of the underground tunnels that Sasuke and Bee found themselves in, with many decorations like old ninja tools and aged wooden furniture that surrounded the series of tunnels.

"Someone is using this as a hideout as I speak, they could still be down here, but let's not destroy this place should a battle develop, there might be more secrets awaiting us down here that could be of some value." said Sasuke to Bee as they walked down the long walkway and arrived at a fork in the next set of tunnels, with two different paths awaiting them.

"Normally this would be a bad time considering I have a bad sense of direction, but with that eye of yours, finding the right way is as easy as ever." said Bee.

"Well, I sense chakra signatures from both ends of these tunnels, though they both seem to lead to the same destination, so we will both head towards the right tunnel, let's go." said Sasuke to Bee.

"Got ya, I wonder if any of my records will be down here, hehehe." said Bee as he and Sasuke entered the right tunnel, hoping to find some sort of clue to what this underground tunnel may be for.

"There are more of these lights, looks like winter lights, it is still very dark down here, but, I can see a door to the left, just a few meters in front of us." said Sasuke as he and Bee walked closer to the door.

"Oh man, I bet the enemy could be behind that door, if that is true, then their luck sure is poor." said Bee as he and Sasuke stood right in front of the door, ready to enter the unknown.

"I will bust down the door, then I want you to immediately rush in with Samehada and see what the contents of this room contains." said Sasuke as he prepared to knock the door down with his fist.

"Let's go, I am ready to wreck some sad fool's shit today, fool, ya fool." said Bee as Sasuke knocked down the door.

Bee then swiftly entered the room, but there was no lights in the room, though some feint sounds of scratching could be heard.

"Sasuke, I cannot see well, but something smells really bad in here, maybe if you could light a torch, then we can make out what that scratching noise is." said Bee as Sasuke walked into the room and prepared to light a piece of wood he found on the floor beside him.

The room then lit up, as a table with many shinobi tools covered in blood could be seen at the far end of the room, and in the other corner was someone covered with a white cloth, which was also covered in blood.

"Wh...what is this, some kind of torture room?" asked Sasuke with confusion.

"Hey man, yo alright?" asked Bee as he approached the person covered in the white, bloody cloth.

"Bee, be careful, we do not know if this is a trap or not." said Sasuke as he had his Eternal Mangekyou ready in case of a combat situation.

"I got it, hey you alright, let me get this cover off ya." said Bee as he reached down and took the blood soaked cover off the person, and he immediately dropped it.

"This is terrible, who could have done this." said Bee as he was visually disturbed.

"There is no sense in this shit, I bet it was one of those fucking Knights of Dawn." said Sasuke as they both saw the condition that the person under the cloth was in.

The man's skin had been removed, and his left leg was amputated from the knee down, his eyes were sewn shut as he was clawing at the dirt wall beside him, making small moans in the process.

"I don't know what to do Sasuke, this is fucked up, who could have done such a terrible thing?" asked Bee.

"I know this might seem bad, but we have no other choice but to put this man out of his misery." said Sasuke with a saddened tone.

"Ughhh, NO GO AWAY, I HAVE SEEN THE LIGHT, I AM READY FOR ASCENSION!" yelled the man loudly as he started clawing at the wall much more intensely, causing his skinned fingers to break off of his hand.

"Bee, come back." said Sasuke to Bee as he focused his eye on the tortured and disturbed man.

"Ameterasu." said Sasuke as he covered the room, and the man in the black flames.

"Sasuke, why?" asked Bee who was disturbed by the whole situation.

"He was too far gone, not to mention that he was going to die at any moment, there was nothing more I could do than send him to the afterlife, at least he will not be suffering anymore." said Sasuke as he activated his Susanoo and decided to destroy the entire underground caverns.

"I bet there were hundreds of people like this down here, the smell was unbearable, but those poor people's conditions were even more so." said Gyuki within Bee's mind.

"That's it, I am going to kill every last one of those sick fucks as soon as I can, they will pay for what they did to these people." said Sasuke with a fierce look of anger on his face.

"It is time to avenge these lost souls my man, let's show them what happens when you torture the innocent." said Bee as he activated his Version 1 Eight Tailed Chakra cloak.

"Let's go." said Sasuke as he and Bee ran out of the forest and towards the main gates of Lazarus.

Elsewhere, Zaire and Tetsuga arrived on top of a building on the far east of the city.

"Seems someone has destroyed me underground caverns, whoever it was will be eviscerated in the most glorious way, but that comes later, for now, we shall invite Naruto to the Castle of Leviticus, and then show him the true sights of our grand emperor and god, Hirudeguarn!" said Zaire as he stood atop the marble building with a tone of joy as he overlooked the city.

"Yes, this is the atonement we have been waiting for, the day when the gods finally end their tears and the sun shines down atop the Golden Hero." said Tetsuga as the two jumped down from atop the building and walked towards the location of the suburbs of the city.

"Naruto, it will be so nice to meet you under formal circumstances, I will be sure not to skin you alive at least, hehehe." laughed Zaire as veins were visible on his forehead.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 035...-**


	35. Naruto's Suspicion

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 035: Naruto's Suspicion**

Naruto had made his way into the fountain at the center of the city of Lazarus, which was beyond the suburbs that he had met the elderly woman at earlier.

"I have merged with my shadow clones, yet I have not gained any knowledge on these Knights of Dawn yet, though I am a little more familiar with the geography of this place." thought Naruto to himself.

"Well, if you were her for a geography lesson, you would be good, but it is obvious that the large castle you saw on that mountain range is our destination, just make sure that you are the only one who enters, we don't want those friends of yours to get caught up in some kind of massacre." said Kurama to Naruto.

"I know, I can sense two chakras coming near me right now, I will be ecstatic to see who it is, and depending on who it is, that will determine my next move." said Naruto to Kurama in his mind.

"That is the best thing you can do for now Naruto, though I would not be surprised if this entire journey, as well as the map layout on that scroll, was just one large trap put together by these scoundrels to steal me from you." said Kurama to Naruto with an angered tone.

"Heh, don't worry about that my friend, with me and you as a team, no shinobi alive can defeat us." said Naruto confident in his teamwork with the tailed beast within him.

"Don't forget, you have small portions of the one through eight tails within you as well, but they can only be accessed in special circumstances." said Kurama to Naruto as he jumped on top of the pillar in the middle of the water fountain and stared off into the northwest towards the Castle of Leviticus.

"Now, we wait and see what two people are coming this way." said Naruto as he remained in his normal Sage Mode with his senses focused on the two chakras headed towards him.

Sasuke and Bee had destroyed the underground catacombs where Zaire had been torturing innocent victims for his own pleasure, outside of the main plains of the Sun-Braced Grove.

"Even at my lowest point, I could not have made myself do that to someone, not just for no reason." said Sasuke to Bee as his Rinnegan was focused on the surroundings of the city.

"I know man, check it, I have seen and been through some terrible stuff, but still, that tortured man will be avenged, as will the rest of those helpless people." said Bee in his Version 1 eight tails chakra cloak as the two stopped in the middle of the southern plantation towards the southern forest.

"I know you are here Orochimaru, Jugo, Karin, and Suigetsu, show yourselves, or me and Bee will come find you." said Sasuke with a slightly angered voice.

"Yo, we have been followed, I would have never thought that some fool would want to by a copy of my new mix-tape that badly." thought Bee to himself.

"Still grumpy as always, but I guess you have a reason to be this time, I know I am for having to come all the way out here and be practically useless." said Suigetsu as he was the first to emerge from the forest.

"To be fair, that man's gravity based techniques from his sword made it hard for anyone to move properly, thus not allowing us to help out Lord Orochimaru from the beginning." said Jugo as he emerged second.

"Normally, I would be ecstatic to be near Sasuke's scent, but hehehe, I don't want to mess with a married man, now do I?" asked Karin to herself as she stayed close to Jugo, still fearful of the chakra she sensed earlier.

"I see you have not ran into any of these Knights of Dawn yet Sasuke, Bee, but I have, and from what I can tell, those same two are now headed towards Naruto as I speak." said Orochimaru as he walked from behind Taka and stood in front of them.

"I bet one of them was responsible for that torture chamber we found, that was some sick shit, check it." said Bee.

"Is that so, and you are here to find your brother right, any luck with that?" asked Sasuke to Orochimaru.

"Hehehe, well in a way yes, but it turns out that he is not only associated with Lazarus, he is the one who the Knights have been referring to as the Apathetic Judge." said Orochimaru to Sasuke with a slightly worried tone.

"Man, even this snake fool is worried, but we octopi are not so easily scared." thought Bee to himself as Gyuki face palmed again within his consciousness.

"We are going to continue our search around these walls of the city, I am confident in Naruto's ability to defend himself, I assume you four are headed to wherever this Hirudeguarn is, and Naruto and his team are here for the same reason as me and Bee, well, that about settles it, let's end this potential disaster before it can even begin." said Sasuke to Bee as he started to walk towards the outer reaches of the grassy plains, towards the hot springs.

"Sasuke, where did you get that golden sword strapped to your back?" asked Suigetsu who just happened to notice it the moment Sasuke turned around.

"Geez, do you really need to start fantisizing about another damn sword?" asked Karin to Suigetsu with an annoyed tone.

"Hey, I am proficient with blades now more than ever, do you think I was just loafing around for two years after the war doing nothing?" asked Suigetsu to Karin with a sarcastic tone.

"Yes, I actually do think that." said Karin to Suigetsu with a dry sense of humor.

"Me and Bee found it in a cemetery on the other side of these city walls, once we picked it up, these undead creatures ambushed us, but we fought them off, I assume it belonged to someone from within this city." said Sasuke to Suigetsu.

"You can have it though, I know how much Zabuza's blade meant to you before you lost it, I have my own sword anyway." said Sasuke as he threw the golden glade, within a diamond hilt right towards Suigetsu.

"Hmmm, that blade sure does look expensive, maybe even worth millions." thought Jugo to himself.

"Really... thank you my friend, and now, I can actually send whatever sorry bastard we run into next, six feet under in the blink of an eye." said Suigetsu with an joyful tone.

"Heh, if it turns out to be better than Kusanagi, then your blind luck is the greatest on our planet." said Orochimaru as he was jealous of the blade in a comical sense.

"Anyway, farewell for now my former Taka, try not to get too bummed out by Orochimaru's depressing demeanor." said Sasuke as he and Bee walked towards the Hot Springs.

"Wow, so that is how he views me currently, hehe." thought Orochimaru to himself as he and Taka decided to head west of where Sasuke and Bee were headed.

Deep within the Castle of Leviticus, Dretoen has entered a large room ordained with large red rubies and garnets, surrounded by Iron seams and Crystal nails. This area was the top-most floor of the back area of the Castle, above the asylum directly below it, with a dark, barely lit ambiance to it.

"Your majesty, I have been analyzing the five major countries and they appear to be aware of our operations, probably from the info that Sasuke had collected, and they plan to organize a summit in the Land of Iron, not unlike the one three years ago during Obito's war." said Dreatoen as he stood in front of a large throne surrounded by many shelves of books and tables with red cloth and candles on them.

"As if I would even begin to think about such folly things, for my depression will only be churned when I stare that magnificent boy straight in the eyes during the heat of battle, though concerning the shinobi alliance, their test is coming soon, I will see to that." said Hirudeguarn as he sat in his throne, resembling a Jackal, and had another cigar in his mouth which he had just lit.

"Still yet, it has been a while since you have left the castle, has something been bothering you lately?" asked Dreatoen to his master.

"Well, considering the current affairs and state of this lowly planet, which is surrounded by hundreds of other satellites, the insignificance of these times of peace permits me from even bothering to check out what few interesting plethora that may still exist out there." said Hirudeguarn as he looked up at the chandelier hanging above him.

"My mission to inform you of this event has been finished, I will not observe the actions of Sasuke and Bee now, I am curious to what they will do next." said Dreatoen as he began to leave his master's quarters.

"Orochimaru is coming soon, make sure to tell all of the Knights to leave him and his team be, I will gladly see them in person, assuming they can make it to my chamber without wishing to slice their cute little jugulars out of their necks." said Hirudeguarn with a slightly excited look on his large, broad face.

"Farewell, for now." said Dreaton as he shut the large door that led out of the chamber, and proceeded to enter the lower levels of the asylum down the stairs below.

"Now then, Orochimaru, what will you say, depending on that, it could be the catalyst that decides this world's next rotation." said Hirudeguarn as he lit another cigar and closed his eyes.

Naruto had jumped off of the fountain he was standing on earlier as he noticed two figures approaching him from the western part of the city. All of the surrounding citizens had gathered around the surrounding buildings to observe the events that were about to take place.

"There here." said Kurama within Naruto's mind.

"Yes, I know." said Naruto as Tetsuga and Zaire had arrived right in front of him.

"Before either of you two say anything, if you really wanted to convince me to come here in a pleasant mood, you should have left Ishigakure out of this, because now I will almost certainly kill both of you." said Naruto with a stern voice as he was still in his Sage Mode.

"Fair enough, I mean I expect anyone who saw what Zaire did back there to be atrocious, you have every right to wish death upon us, hell I would want the same." said Tetsuga with a honest approach towards Naruto.

"Let me be frank and clear about something, no one tells me what and what not to fuckin' do, and even though your entire person has captivated the eye of Hirudeguarn, our master, it does not mean I feel the same way, in fact, I would love to torture you, just like those hundreds that used to be in my catacombs." said Zaire as he decided to not use deception towards Naruto.

"I appreciate the honesty, at least I can know that you don't lie, it will make it easier to fight you two with that in mind." said Naruto as he was about to create several shadow clones.

Suddenly, Lehourihm, Andarius, Antoine, Lunesto, and Jesei had also arrived beside Zaire and Tetsuga, and all stood in front of Naruto, with everyone bowing, except Zaire and Tetsuga.

"You see, there will be a fight, but not with us, remember when you were told that our boss was your biggest fan, well he meant that in a way in which he will be the one to fight you, and that shall be two weeks from now, in the Northern Badlands, north of Sunagakure in the Land of Wind." said Zaire with a smile on his face.

"Huh, why does he not introduce himself to me now, I mean if he is really that interested in me?" asked Naruto as he had entered his Nine-Tails Chakra Mode for added assurance.

"It is not you he is interested in as much as what you have been able to do, none of us even knew of your name until around two years ago." said Jesei as he stood up beside Zaire.

"Pain's Invasion, bringing your friend Sasuke to the light, facing Obito, Madara, and Kaguya, and stopping the moon from colliding with Earth, hard to let those events go unnoticed." said Andarius with a lazy expression.

"How many people can say that they were the deciding factors in these events, none, none but you, even if you had help, you were the main card." said Lunesto with a blush towards Naruto.

"I am not falling for this tirade, I am aware of the crazy road that my life has been lately, but to think of me as some sort of Golden Hero is merely an excuse to continue your acts of terrorism." said Naruto with a stern voice to the seven men in front of him.

"Says you, but just take to time to meet Hirudeguarn, you will not be sorry, he has been talking to you in your dreams after all." said Antoine to Naruto, knowing of what his boss had been doing, concerning the luring of Naruto to their city.

"So he was the one, I see." said Naruto remembering the terrible nightmares he had ever since he and Hinata had left the beach and returned to Konoha.

"Don't be too distraught, it was merely a way to communicate with you on a psychological level, it was not an attack, and I am sure you will even come to like the atmosphere if these dreams if you bother to try and understand them." said Tetsuga with joy.

"Now with all of this said, I believe that only one question remains now, Naruto Uzumaki, will you reside here for two weeks to face Hirudeguarn, or will you return to your village, and be forever ignorant of the endpoint of what has allowed us to understand the reasons for life in the first place, the choice is yours, this test is only one that someone as deserving as you is privileged enough to undertake." said Lehourihm with a calm expression as he reached his hand out towards Naruto's.

Naruto remained silent as he deactivated his chakra mode and looked up towards the Castle of Leviticus, thinking of what could be watching him from within the walls.

"If this Apathetic Judge really wants to fight me for the sake of finding out the true reasons of why I did the things I did, tell him I will, but as for staying here, that is not an option." said Naruto to the seven men in front of him.

"Fair Enough, remember the location of the battle, and tell Shikamaru, Sakura, and Sai to come here immediately, Andarius." said Antoine to both Naruto and Andarius respectively.

"I did not say anything about getting them involved." said Naruto with an angered tone.

"And we did not say anything about why they accepted you in the first place." said Dreatoen as he suddenly appeared inches in front of Naruto.

"Is this Hirudeguarn, his chakra is amazing?" asked Naruto to himself.

"I am Dreatoen Morea, a surviving member of the Otsutsuki clan, and I know more than anyone that you will agree to this invitation, because you are aware deep down in your mind of what is at stake." said Dreatoen as he looked Naruto directly into the eyes.

"What is this, who is this man, Naruto try not to falter from his words, and be sure to keep some distance, I sense that we may be having yet another visitor soon enough." said Kurama within Naruto's mind as Andarius started running towards the direction of Sakura and the others at high speeds.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 036...-**


	36. The Windmill of Change

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 036: The Windmill of Change**

Andarius had started to run towards the area where Shikamaru, Sakura, Sai, and the young woman in the swamp were located, following Dreatoen's appearance towards Naruto.

"Before you head out there to try and intimidate them, you better watch out, they are skilled." said Naruto to Andarius speaking of his comrades of the leaf.

"I know, but chill, I am not going to engage in combat with them, you can even come with me, hell I want to show you that we Knights of Dawn will keep our word now that you are here, even if you personally don't approve of us." said Andarius to Naruto.

"No, go ahead, I believe you, after all, to you guys I am like some kind of messiah, although that belief is misguided." said Naruto with confusion towards the eight men in front of him.

"No we believe that Hirudeguarn is the messiah, you are the one he was taken interest in as of late, we are just following his orders, that is all." said Lehourihm to Naruto with a blank expression.

"Then that gives me room to trash this place if any of you act up." said Naruto as he walked towards Dreatoen and looked him eye to eye.

"Would you put all of these innocent bystanders at risk just because of what Zaire did back in Ishigakure?" asked Dreatoen to Naruto with a mocking tone.

"No, I would merely drag each of you one by one and throw you into oblivion." said Naruto as he entered his Tailed Beast Chakra Mode, the level beyond Nine Tails Chakra Mode.

"Heh, that is a step above what I have seen before." said Antoine with a surprised look on his face.

"Well, you are definatley a master of intimidation, at least towards ninety-nine percent of the earth, we are not saying that you lack bite with your bark, we just know that you will comply with Hirudeguarn's gesture towards you, after all, a chance to fight him is like fighting all eight of us at once." said Jesei with an ecstatic tone towards Naruto.

"Once again, you manage to keep the scales tipped in your favor, just remember that I do not have to abide to your boss' wish to wait two weeks if I do not want to." said Naruto as a fiery glow could be seen in his eyes.

"I know, but don't worry, you can release all of your anger towards the loss of Ishigakure's citizens, as well as the ones that I killed in Amazeo, and the ones that Zaire killed in his torture chamber, all towards are boss when you fight him." said Tetsuga with a smile on his war-craving eyes.

"Just for that, you will be the first one I come after when my battle with this boss of yours is over." said Naruto to Tetsuga as he approached Dreatoen again.

"Look, I will bring my friends here, we will stay in this city for two weeks, and then I will face your boss in combat, but in exchange, once that battle is finished, you eight will all be at my mercy." said Naruto as Kurama's eyes looked over the eight men with a menacing glare.

"That Nine-Tails and Naruto being perfectly synched makes for something just as scary as our boss when he is mad." said Lunesto as sweat was pouring down from his forehead.

"Andarius, let Naruto go alone to escort his friends to this very spot, once you and the others arrive, I will show you to a living quarters where you can remain undisturbed by us for two weeks, we will be sure to give you some space, I am just thankful that you have agreed to our wishes, and I fully understand your desire to avenge those who we have killed, hell, I don't really want to live anymore anyway." said Dreatoen as he retained a saddened look on his face, which then turned into one of insane glee.

"I shall return soon, you, the guy with the pink horns on his head, you tell those others to leave the area now so that way I can trust your word and yours alone." said Naruto as he started to walk towards the directions of where his friends were located.

"Fair enough, the rest of you report back to the Castle of Leviticus, I will see to this alone." said Dreatoen who managed to conceal his emotions again.

"Hehehe, I was tempted to say something during this entire exchange, but Naruto himself took the words right out of my mouth." said Zaire with a satisfied tone as he and the other six Knights started to run back towards the direction of the castle.

"It was nice meeting you Naruto, although I believe that next time, things will be a little more... depressing." said Lehourihm with a saddened tone as he and the others disappeared into the mass of buildings below the staircase leading to Leviticus.

"Well, go ahead and get your friends, I will wait here, agreed?" asked Dreatoen towards Naruto.

"Fine, I will back shortly, just wait here." said Naruto with a calm, but irritated tone as he did not want to be away from Hinata for an extended period of time.

Naruto quickly dashed towards his team's location as Dreatoen looked on towards the setting sun as the seventh and final day of the one week journey to Lazarus was nearing an end.

Meanwhile in Konohagakure, Kakashi was looking out through his window into the sunset, thinking of the well-beings of Naruto and the others.

"It has been about a week now, I would have came along too, but as Hokage that would not be practical now would it, hehe, in any case, it is not like I am needed anyway, but still, deep down I feel that Naruto will return an even bigger hero that he was before." said Kakashi as Hinata had walked into the Hokage's room.

"Sorry to keep bothering you, Lord Hokage, but I was just wanting to know if any word on Naruto's status had came back yet?" asked Hinata with a worried tone.

"Not yet I am afraid, but that is most likely because Naruto had forgot and is a lousy writer, though I believe that Sasuke and Bee will update us on the overall situation once the time is right, in other words, Naruto and his company will be fine, now you and Naruto's future should just relax for a while, sit next to the window if ya want." said Kakashi to Hinata with a friendly gesture.

"Okay, I will wait here for a bit, perhaps a messenger Hawk will fly in anytime to update us." said Hinata as she sat beside the window that looked out into the direction of her and Naruto's house.

"Oh Naruto, I know it has only been a week, but to me it feels like an eternity, I just hope that you are not letting any worries bring you down, I only want you to feel joy for eternity." thought Hinata to herself as she tried to hold back the tears in her eyes due to her mind wondering about Naruto.

"It will be fine, trust me, I have seen the grimmest of all situations, but when Naruto is present, it gets brighter." said Kakashi to Hinata with a tone of joy.

"Thank you Lord Hokage." said Hinata as she continued to stare into the sky as it transitions into night.

Naruto had arrived at his friend's location, with his Tailed Beast Mode, minus the Kurama avatar, activated.

"I have met with the Knights of Dawn, looks like we will be staying here for two weeks." said Naruto with an angered tone on his face.

"What, two weeks, why is that?" asked Sakura with a curious tone.

"Because the whole reason for us coming out here, according to the Knights of Dawn, is to have a personal fight with Hirudeguarn, their boss and the man that they have been referring to as the Apathetic Judge." said Naruto with a stern tone.

"Hirudeguarn eh, huh, so this is the whole reason behind all of this bullshit, someone else wants to try and start another conflict." said Shikamaru with a bothered look in his eyes.

"Well, we are here as well, plus if my eyes and memory serve me correct, it looks like we are not alone anymore." said Sai as he could see two figures in the distance of the swamp walking towards them.

"...But that man is evil, he is the one who did this to me...and my family." said the young lady that Naruto had saved earlier.

"I know, that is why I am going to avenge your family when I fight him, and then I will make sure that something like this never happens again." said Naruto to the young woman with a smile on his face.

"Still the same happy gestures as always, though in this case, I guess it is well deserved." said Sasuke as he and Bee approached Naruto and the others as night had arrived.

"Yo Naruto, it has been a while, though from what me and Sasuke had seen back in the woods, I am just glad to not be dead... damn that did not rhyme." said Bee with a confused tone about him.

"So you two have been traveling together all of this time, I guess you must have seen the other Kages about this whole thing then, am I right?" asked Naruto to Sasuke.

"Yes, I have told them about the whole incident here, including a man named Andarius attacking Kirigakure and almost killing the Mizukage and Inari among others." said Sasuke to Naruto.

"That bastard." thought Naruto thinking of Andarius and what he had said earlier.

"Yo check it, the five kage are going to meet in the Land of Iron to host another Kage Summit, this time concerning the things my man Sasuke here had just finished telling you." said Bee as he gave a fist bump to Naruto.

"Heh, is Sasuke as boring as ever to travel around with or what?" asked Naruto to Bee with a laugh.

"I know man it is frisky, he would not even try some of my own special whisky." said Bee as Sasuke walked towards Sakura.

"I will be staying by your side the whole time we are here, perhaps it can make up for the week that you were alone." said Sasuke as he gave Sakura a hug and then proceeded to stare off towards the many lights of the buildings and power poles in Lazarus.

"Thank you, Sasuke, I have been wondering how you were doing lately, but now that you are here again, at least I can be a little optimistic now." said Sakura.

"I will tend to this woman, let's go on ahead to the city while we are at it." said Sai with a serious tone.

"I agree with that, this Dreatoen guy told me that he would be waiting back in the city to escort us to a house where we will have to stay for two weeks if I am to fight this Apathetic Judge, Hirudeguarn in battle." said Naruto as Sasuke seemed surprised.

"So my suspicion was right, Orochimaru's brother is the Apathetic Judge." said Sasuke with a worried tone in his voice.

"Huh, Orochimaru's brother?" asked Naruto with confusion.

"You mean someone as bad or worse that that freak, oh great." said Shikamaru with a tone of fear.

"Huh, I don't like this at all, and after everything that has happened so far, the more allies we have on our side the better." said Sakura as she was nervous about the upcoming two weeks.

"Don't worry fool, ya fool, whether he is the brotha of a freak or not, this devil's terrible acts will be put to an end when Naruto gets a hold of him, and we will help too." said Bee with a joyful expression.

"Okay, with the six of us now here, let's go to where I spoke with that Dreatoen guy, he will be the one to let us know what to do next, or at least where to stay for the night." said Naruto as he, Sasuke, Bee, Sakura, Sai, Shikamaru, and the young lady all walked towards the entrance of the city of Lazarus.

Elsewhere, standing atop the Castle of Leviticus, Hirudeguarn was staring over the horizon as the night sky had came in, with his large mortician's hat shadowing his demonic eyes as he could sense Naruto and his team's arrival the moment they stepped foot into the city.

"Alright, it looks like things are a go then, I am so happy for this, if only I could meet him face to face directly, but oh well, two weeks are nothing but a second to my mind which has seen all." thought Hirudeguarn to himself as the seven Knights of Dawn that left towards the castle earlier all arrived on top of it, and bowed to Hirudeguarn.

"You know I usually like to be alone during these times, but I will make a special occasion this time, for with your help, Naruto is in a position in which he cannot turn my request, no my demand down, and as for the Shinobi Alliance, we will let them have their Summit in peace, the time for their own personal hell will come soon, for so is the will of Rah'Zuh." said Hirudeguarn with his bloodshot eyes looking directly towards the many stars that covered the night sky.

"Yes, this is the most glorious moment for our city ever since it's founding, to be able to know that you are ready to get personally involved is all the more reason for us to be motivated, retribution will be the first priority for us, or at least for me." said Jesei as he stood up and walked towards Hirudeguarn.

"My dear friend, it has been a long time coming, but peace will finally be with you again, for I will not rest until your troubles are taken care of." said Hirudeguarn as the giant serpentine demon looked down towards Jesei with a sincere tone to his deep, booming voice.

"Yes, and the end of the worthless system of Alliances as well, for hypocrisy is one thing that us Knights of Dawn will not tolerate." said Jesei with a glow in his grey eyes as he stared down at Naruto, as he and the others approached Dreatoen.

Naruto and his team had arrived at the location in which Dreatoen had waited like he had agreed to.

"I see you have everyone with you, the time for questions though is not nye, for tomorrow will be the time, for now just think of old thoughts and dwell on the things which soothe you, do not concern us at all, for we and you are one in the same." said Dreatoen to his company with an enigmatic tone.

"Huh, this guy sure has a way with words, but I will not let it fool me." said Sakura as she was standing beside Sasuke.

"Yo, that was not even a rap, but I can dig it, wait... could this be the guy with that torture chamber?" asked Bee with a confused tone yet again.

"No, that would be Zaire, I am not him, as I said, questions will be saved for tomorrow." said Dreatoen.

"Oh really, and what if I were to change that myself?" asked Sasuke as he noticed the young woman standing beside of Shikamaru.

"So, that lady over there was a survivor of you sick fucks eh, well get ready then, for I can at least put her mind to rest." said Sasuke as he walked beside Naruto with his eyes filled with rage.  
 **  
-To be continued next time with Chapter 037...-**


	37. Another Meeting in the Land of Iron

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 037: Another Meeting in the Land of Iron**

Sasuke stood beside Naruto with his eyes focused on Dreatoen, after noticing the fear of the young woman in his company.

"Oh, Yagumi, she was an escapee from our experimentation program, her family proved to be vital subjects in determining the true power of the human mind, but unfortunately, they did not make it." said Dreatoen towards Sasuke and Naruto.

"Huh, it is him, that is the man." said Yagumi with a fearful tone.

"So he is the one who did this to you, if that is the case, I will kill him right here right now, Naruto does not need to wait to fight this guy after all." said Sasuke.

"Just wait, we do not want to create too much chaos at this time, though I can understand why you feel this way towards that man." said Naruto to Sasuke.

"Well if you understand, then you will be okay when I cut that man's head clean off his body!" yelled Sasuke as he ran towards Dreatoen with a Chidori activated.

"Sasuke, what are you doing?" asked Sakura with a worried expression.

"Geez, he is as hard headed as always." said Naruto as he decided to not interfere with the situation.

"So, you have decided to avenge that girl eh, how touching." said Dreatoen with a blank expression as Sasuke pierced his heart with the Chidori.

"I guess you really don't want to live after all, you did not even try to dodge this attack." said Sasuke to Dreatoen.

"Not exactly, I just needed you within a close proximity of me to use my jutsu." said Dreatoen to Sasuke.

"Huh, what does he mean?" asked Shikamaru with a confused look.

"Mirror Release: Parity." said Dreatoen as he surrounded himself and Sasuke within a blank, white dimension with no objects or buildings in sight.

"What the hell, where did you bring us?" asked Sasuke with an angered tone.

"Don't worry, this jutsu is not an offensive one, I do not like to fight at all actually, and I was not the one who killed that girl's parents either, though why you would be the one with concern is beyond me." said Dreatoen to Sasuke.

"What do you mean by that?" asked Sasuke with his Rinnegan focused on the man.

"Well, did you not want to kill the Kages and even Naruto at one time, and because he, the Golden Hero, decided to spare your life, it gives you incentive to play hero, grow up my friend, you are not fooling anyone with this savior act of yours, you are just another example of Naruto's power to change someone." said Dreatoen as he released himself and Sasuke from the jutsu and returned to their ordinary location.

"Sasuke, you are alright, what happened?" asked Sakura with relief.

"Yo, they were only gone for a second, what the hell is that about?" asked Killer Bee with confusion.

"So that is a taste of what to expect from him." said Naruto as he looked onwards.

"Tsk, fine, I will leave you for later, just show us to the damn hotel, the sooner the next day comes the better, that is when I will fight you." said Sasuke as he walked back towards Sakura.

"That is more like it, now follow me, we will fight soon, but not now, that is not what Lord Hirudeguarn would want." said Dreatoen as he escorted Naruto and his team towards the hotel located in the northeast of the city.

Elsewhere, Ohnoki, along with Akatsuchi and Kurotsuchi were leaving the Tsuchikage's mansion, as night had fallen.

"So we are leaving for the Land of Iron at once, I guess this meeting is as important as the last on after all." said Akatsuchi towards Ohnoki who was sitting on his back.

"Apparently, we had the postpone the Allied Chunin exams as well, what a pity, I was looking forward to that." said Kurotsuchi who was bummed out about having to travel all the way out to the Land of Iron.

"Save the complaining for later, people of our own land have been killed by these Knights of Dawn as Sasuke called them, and we should be the first to arrive at the meeting, I will not have Amazaeo's sacrifice be in vain." said Ohnoki as he hopped off of Akatsuchi and decided to fly slightly above the ground the rest of the way.

"My my, you sure are worked up now, but I can understand it, those bastards will not go unpunished for the things that they have done." said Akatsuchi as he decided to follow along.

In Kumogakure, A, Omoi, and Darui have also started to head out towards the Land of Iron as well.

"Oh boy, it is even in the middle of the night, could we have not left in the morning, it would have been easier to see out here." said Omoi with a slightly worried tone.

"Oh hell, you will be fine, I can imagine that the other Kages have also started their own journey towards the Land of Iron by now, no reason to keep them waiting, Kakashi's report did call that we all leave around this time anyway." said A to Omoi.

"No matter how you put it, this sure seems like an unknown force we could be dealing with, I mean we had more information on the Akatsuki and we still had trouble." said Darui with a sigh.

"Well, the unknown is not always as bad as one would think, once we solve this little riddle and figure out who these guys really are, they will not be so bad anymore." said A as he decided to run at a faster speed.

"Dammit, now I have to pick up the pace too, man what if I get leg cramps?" asked Omoi to himself as the three shinobi continued on into the dark of night.

Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro had also made it some ways into the Land of Wind as they were not phased by the night that have fallen.

"It sure is a lot cooler in this damn desert around this time, I think it was a good idea to leave when we did after all." said Kankuro as he had many scrolls of his favorite puppets on his back.

"I could care less about the temperature, I just hope that fool Shikamaru does not get carried away out there, I have not seen him since I left Konoha to come visit for this venture." said Temari to Kankuro.

"Naruto as well, he appears to be the one that is most sought out right now by this new foe, but for whatever reason it may be, I am not worried, for we will be right behind him when the time comes." said Gaara as he looked on ahead into the desert in front of him.

In Kirigakure, Mei, Chojuro, and one of the elite ANBU if that area had made it onto a boat as they were headed for the main land en route to the summit.

"I hope that Andarius guy does not decide to attack us while we are at sea." said Chojuro with his blade on the ready.

"I am also keeping watch as well, anything that approaches my barrier will instantly alert me of suspicious activity." said the masked ANBU member.

"Kakashi was quick to respond after Sasuke and Bee saved us from those men, although Kazuma could not be saved, but that will be dealt with when I see that piece of shit next time." said Mei with an angered tone thinking of her fallen ANBU associate.

Kakashi, Yamato, and Hinata have arrived in Tanzaku Town as they decided to hurry along to make it to the Land of Iron by the next day at the latest.

"Thank you for allowing me to come with you, I feel responsibility for keeping things in order back here while Naruto keeps order where he is at." said Hinata to Kakashi.

"It is no problem, and you make an excellent bodyguard as well, maybe Naruto is the lucky man for having a tough wife like you, hehe." said Kakashi.

"Yeah, it feels good to be on the road again, at least the only bad blood this time is being dealt with already, although I do wonder what these Knights of Dawn could really be." said Yamato to Kakashi.

"Whatever reason they could be operating on, it will dim down to war in the end, I can tell already, some people are just not happy with stability, I guess Obito would have said that had he been here with us right now." said Kakashi as he focused on the journey ahead.

Naruto and company had arrived at the hotel that Dreatoen had escorted them to as midnight came about.

"Here is where you can stay for now, don't worry about our civilians, they are already aware of your status here, for Naruto, you are the real leader of this city." said Dreatoen as he started to leave.

"Well just remember this, once my battle with your so called majesty ends, I will be back for you eight as well, like I said earlier." said Naruto as he decided to jump on top of the hotel and sit above the other buildings in the city.

"Farewell." said Dreatoen as he looked over towards Sasuke and Bee, before running into the nearby streets.

"He will be at our mercy soon, fool ya fool." said Bee to Sasuke.

"Yeah, I know, let's sleep outside of the hotel, on opposite ends Bee, just in case something goes awry." said Sasuke as he and Bee decided to keep watch.

"Me and Sai will make a plan concerning the actions we will take in the coming thirteen days, perhaps inviting us here will be a good opportunity to discover their true intentions." said Shikamaru to the others.

"I agree, that man seemed to relaxed, as if he had some insurance in this whole thing, like it was going the way he wanted it to the whole time." said Sai to Shikamaru.

"Yagumi was it, come with me, we will stay in a separate room, I will heal the rest of your wounds in there." said Sakura.

"Okay, thanks." said the young woman to Sakura as the moon was positioned right above the city.

Naruto sat on top of the hotel alone as he looked up towards the moon and began to think about what he would do next.

"I assume you are going to prepare yourself mentally for this fight with that Apathetic Judge, eh?" asked Kurama from within Naruto's mind.

"Not just that, but the real reason why he wants to fight me, is it just a little game to him, or is he that fascinated by what I did, I just don't understand it yet, but once we meet, I will." said Naruto to Kurama.

"Well, you did do quite a few rather impressive things don't you think, like subduing me for one, and that is the smallest feat compared to the rest." said Kurama to Naruto.

"Still, it is not like I was enjoying those things when they happened, many have died over the past few years, and I want to try and stop this from happening again, at least when it concerns the events happening in this village." said Naruto as he closed his eyes and laid down, falling asleep with these thoughts in his mind.

Deep within the throne room of Hirudeguarn's quarters, Zaire had entered the room with a restless demeanor as Hirudeguarn sat on his throne, with a cigar freshly lit, looking out the stainless window right above him with a grin.

"So, you still awake after all Zaire, why don't you go swim or something my boy, it is not healthy to venture around here in the dark of night." said Hirudeguarn to Zaire as he directed his attention to the crazed Senju.

"Well, other than mutilating myself, the only peace I get nowadays is torture, assassination, or seeing you, but I chose the latter this time." said Zaire to his master.

"Grab a seat then, I have something I have been wanting to get off of my chest, and who better to tell than the decedent of my sensei, Hashirama Senju." said Hirudeguarn as he removed his hat and his eyes lit up widely.

"So, is that all you still see me as, just the decedent of Hashirama, that may be true, but his ideals and mine are as different as you and the rest of this world." said Zaire as he started cutting his forearm deeply with a kunai.

"Now don't do that my dear boy, for I still see you as the innocent four year old I saved from starvation deep within the Land of Woods, and when you do that it hurts me, but hurt is better than nothing, however enough of that, you know what I want to talk to you about now?" asked Hirudeguarn to Zaire as several candles hanging on the chandelier above them dimly lit the large room surrounded by many shelves of books and other scrolls.

"I see, even the way I am now, you can still see the utmost innocent part of me, which I have killed off along time ago." said Zaire as he was anticipating to here what Hirudeguarn had to say.

"Manipulation, deception, ideals, dreams, these were all things the world was founded upon, yet those who have aspired the most have only found that nothing awaits them at the end, take Madara for example, despite his power, knowledge, and incredible mental fortitude, he was still unknowingly being used by that worthless bitch Kaguya, who I have taken the liberty of deciding to kill one day, mind you." said Hirudeguarn with an angered tone as the giant man clenched his fists so hard they started to bleed.

"Yes, that is right, just like I am being manipulated into deciding not to kill myself right now, but not by you, I want to see more die, the way they would have wanted to same for me." said Zaire with a slightly upset tone.

"Yes, that is it, this world lives off of cheap deals, tactics of temporary and corporate words that they hope to unite the world with, but the truth is that we humans are a worthless species that, despite the efforts of a few, do not deserve the life we are give, for war is the prime living of us all, like it was for Madara, and the path I will forge for us will be to purge the superficial ways of the current world and reveal the true ways of the human kind, I will take great pleasure in ripping each one of their fucking hearts out as I gleefully know that this worldwide ethnic cleansing is taking place!" yelled Hirudeguarn as he stood up and loudly yelled his words towards Zaire with an energetic and deranged tone.

"I agree, keep going, this is what I, no the world needs to hear, for you are the Apathetic Judge, and your kingdom come, and your will be done." said Zaire with a grin as he listened on.

"Naruto, he has used determination and desire to see that the world has changed the way it has so far, but is this a superficial change as well, is Naruto the only one in this world who cares about being a true outstanding man, or has everyone else decided to just come crawling to him when things get hard, listen my dear friend, we will destroy this goddamn fucking alliance and I will show everyone the fear and hate that I have come to love for so long, for I am scared of peace, for Rah'Zuh has told me that peace is a product of the underworld and that the true human relies on nothing to achieve everything!" continued on Hirudeguarn as the room started to get tense with chakra circulating around the whole area.

"Let me make one thing clear, I will see to it that Naruto learns of what he really is, the last good human in a long line of failures, he was no failure, even when he was a young boy, he was a true human, despite what the contingency of mankind thought, and now they treat him good because it is convenient for them, Zaire Senju, let's make those heathens pay, for anyone who is not Naruto Uzumaki, including me and you, deserve to die!" yelled Hirudeguarn as a tear of black liquid fell from his demented bloodshot serpentine eye.  
 **  
-To be continued next time with Chapter 038...-**


	38. The Hooded Medical Expert Kabuto Returns

**Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 038: The Hooded Medical Expert Kabuto Returns**

Hirudeguarn had finished giving his heartfelt speech to Zaire as he proceeded to sit down but his mortician's hat back on and light another cigar. He then glanced over towards Zaire with his red-stained eyes and focused on the entire room before deciding to tell Zaire something.

"Bring Testuga to me once you find it convenient, I have something to ask him, it will be an interesting little event for sure." said Hirudeguarn to Zaire.

"Of course, sir, I will do as you say, especially after your greatest speech yet." said Zaire to his majesty with a proud tone.

Tetsuga was standing outside one of the barracks for the soldiers of Camp Abraham, enjoying a cigar, and thinking of his next move. He walked over towards the skyline of Lazarus and looked up towards the Castle of Leviticus.

"So, I cannot even enjoy a short smoke break for one fucking minute without an interruption?" asked Tetsuga as he noticed that Zaire had appeared behind him.

"Oh come on now, you had three hours to do this shit earlier, besides, Hirudeguarn had given me the directive to ask you to meet with him." said Zaire as he glanced over towards the outer gates of the city.

"Well, if he is the one asking, I can never take that for granted, you know that I don't take things for granted, right Mr. Zaire?" asked Tetsuga to Zaire.

"Yep, sure do, now prove that to me and get your ass to Hirudeguarn, it will probably something fun to do, I on the other hand don't have a goddamn thing to do tonight, oh well." said Zaire as he turned around and started walking towards the main street of Lazarus as the night continued on.

"Alright, I will go there at once." said Tetsuga as he started to walk briskly towards the castle.

"I tell you, this city looks more and more beautiful every night, I am glad to have been able to help with it's thriving culture." said Tetsuga to himself as he approached the front door of the castle.

"I wonder what Hirudeguarn will tell me, could it be something related to Greshem's death, it's not like I knew that fucker Orochimaru and his team were out there." thought Tetsuga to himself.

"So, you are here to help me tidy the place up?" asked Lunesto as he was in the main room of the castle dusting down the various shelves and stairs.

"Fuck no, I am going to speak with Hirudeguarn about something, I could care less about your little endeavors." said Tetsuga as he walked right by Lunesto.

"Well fine then, it's not like I needed help anyway." said Lunesto sarcastically as he continued to clean the main room.

"Then why the fuck did you ask me for you dumb ass." thought Tetsuga to himself as he took the elevator to the lowest level of the castle.

Orochimaru and his team had decided to camp out near the southern shore of the Genesis Ocean, a few miles out from the gates of Lazarus.

"Hehehe, I wonder if Sasuke and Bee had ran into Naruto yet, or perhaps they ran into my brother, in any case, it would be wise for us to lay low for a while until things start to pick up." said Orochimaru to the three members of Taka sitting around him.

"I say we do not approach that place at all until some chaos begins, that should make it easier to infiltrate the castle, where you said your brother resides." said Jugo.

"Or we could just wait for him to come to us, it would make it easier in the long run, would not want to run into another one of those Knights along the way." said Suigetsu as he was swimming in the ocean.

"I cannot sense any chakra around our area, so we are safe for now, but for how long I cannot say." said Karin.

"You are too worried Karin, Lord Orochimaru is here, besides Sasuke and Naruto are around as well, it is not like we are out here without any help." said Jugo to Karin.

"She is right to be distressed, you three do not know of the person that he is, unlike me, he is not even remotely as forgiving, despite viewing me as a demon, he would be considered the devil." said Orochimaru comparing himself to his brother.

"Come on, you are not worried about this now, I thought Orochimaru had no fears." said Suigetsu with a surprised expression as he got out of the water and walked towards the camp.

"It is not fear you imbecile, it is respect, once you meet him, you will share that same respect, I assure you." said Orochimaru with a stern tone towards Suigetsu.

"Okay, sorry I was just saying that this guy sounds like the real deal, but it is nothing that we cannot take care of, right?" asked Suigetsu.

"Don't jump the gun so hastily, until we know what this guy can do, we should tread cautiously." said Jugo towards Suigetsu.

"That is enough talk for now, let me focus for a while, I need to think about how we are going to approach the next day." said Orochimaru as he looked around the area thinking of what could be going on in the city.

Tetsuga had arrived in the throne room where Hirudeguarn was sitted.

"You called for me, Zaire informed me that you had a request." said Tetsuga as he sat down in the chair in front of Hirudeguarn's desk.

"Why yes, I guess he decided to tell you and not ingore my order, good, but more to the point, I have detected a breach in security around the Watering Grounds again, perhaps you can finally meet the little spy who has decided to tread where they don't belong." said Hirudeguarn with a menacing tone.

"Last time it was Orochimaru, but you can confirm that it is the actual spy this time?" asked Tetsuga to Hirudeguarn.

"Oh yeah, it is him, I can tell, go, have fun, and bring him back to me, dead or alive, I don't care." said Hirudeguarn.

"Yes sir, I will have him here by the morning, I swear." said Tetsuga as he began to leave the room.

"About Orochimaru, let him be, I will have fun picking him apart later." said Hirudeguarn with a grin on his face.

"I will sir, I will." said Tetsuga as he began to venture towards the Watering Grounds with anticipation of meeting the spy at long last.

"Hmm, I wonder who it could be, it has to be someone with a lot of courage that is for sure, to dare trespass here without our permission." said Tetsuga as he hurried out of the castle towards his destination.

The rain had picked up in the Watering Grounds, as water was pouring off of the caves and rocks, and the area had slightly flooded as the nearby rivers had begun to overflow. Lightning could be seen in the sky above the area as the fog began to fill the surrounding vicinity.

"Deciding to cover up my tracks from the previous escapade payed off well, it would seem that I still have them guessing." said a man with a hood covering his body, as he walked deep within the forests as the rain dropped on his hood.

"I see, so he is aware of my presence here now, last time he ran into Orochimaru, but I doubt he will make another miscalculation again." continued on the hooded man as he could sense Tetsuga approaching the area.

"Two miles away, that gives me a few minutes to prepare something, let's find out who is the best at espionage, eh Tetsuga." said the man as he turned invisible and jumped onto the bottom of a large branch, using chakra in his feet to hang from it.

Tetsuga had finally arrived back in the Watering Grounds as he decided to hide under a tree in the fog to shield himself from the rain as he began to think over his strategy.

"Whoever this spy is, it will be someone who I have never encountered personally before, it would be best to have my weapon, Ikite Iru, at the ready at all times, and furthermore, for him to be an even better shinobi at stealth than Orochimaru calls for me to be cautious at all times." thought Tetsuga as he activated the Hiding In Camouflage Technique along with the Scent Elimination Technique to make himself seemingly nonexistent.

"Now, we play the waiting game, though my patience has grown a little thin, to put it lightly." said Tetsuga as he jumped into the flooded river beside the basin he was standing at, and proceeded to swim underwater towards the last known location he sensed the trespasser.

"I will have to fight seriously this time, this will be a solo mission, and when all else fails, I will have him come to me, rather than the other way around." thought Tetsuga as he jumped out of the water and ran into a field surrounded by pine trees on all sides as the rain continued to downpour at high intervals.

"Huh, I cannot see him, but I feel his body heat from here, with my eyes focused on that field right in front of me, I can see him through infrared vision." said the hooded man as he descended from the tree quietly and moved closer to Tetsuga's location.

"Now with my two masking jutsu activated, there should exist no one besides Naruto who can find me here, I know that for a fact, not even one with the Sharingan would know of my presence here." said Tetsuga to himself as he had Ikite Iru in his right hand on the ready, in case of a surprise attack.

"Chakra Scalpel Blade!" yelled the hooded man as he appeared behind the seemingly invisible Tetsuga, and thrusted his hand towards Tetsuga's right leg.

"What?" proclaimed Tetsuga with shock as he managed to jump a few meters to the right of the attacker with sweat rolling down his face.

"Hey, who is there, show yourself, and tell me how the fuck you knew where I was at, after all, there is no shinobi better than me in the art of espionage and stealth." said Tetsuga with anger and a wide eyed expression as he quickly looked around the rainy field as he could not seem to find out where his attacker was located.

"Feeling a little nervous tonight, Tetsuga Marshlo, just like how those villagers of Amazeo must have felt when you killed them." said a voice near Tetsuga as footprints could be seen approaching him, but with no physical body that could be seen.

"Is my Chakra Sensing off tonight, I cannot still discern the location of this goddamn fool, but once I do, he is dead." said Tetsuga as he decided to swing his sword in a three-sixty loop to make sure that the attacker was not directly around him.

"Do you think I would just stand right beside you, I am not foolish enough to provoke an attack at such a close proximity, but how long can you stand the pressure of fighting something or someone that you cannot see?" asked the hooded man as he finally made himself visible to Tetsuga, as he was standing around thirty feet in front of him.

"Finally decided to stop hiding like a coward and show yourself, good riddance, now who the hell are you, trespasser?" asked Tetsuga with an angered tone.

"There really is no answer to that question, I am just the trespasser that you were assigned to kill, that is all you need to know, am I right?" asked the hooded man as he majestically walked towards Tetsuga with a blue chakra surrounding his hand.

"Heh, I guess you are right, well let me put that assignment's status to complete then!" yelled Tetsuga as he ran swiftly towards the hooded man and thrusted Ikite Iru right at him, piercing the man's heart.

The man turned into a pile of liquid-like serpents as they all scattered around Tetsuga.

"Okay, what the actual fuck, Orochimaru had a similar replacement jutsu, but this one appears to be different, who the hell is this person?" asked Tetsuga as he used Ikite Iru's magnetic properties to push all of the liquid snakes away.

"So the blade has special attributes just like I thought, it would seem that all eight of you Knights of Dawn are blessed with one, but yours in particular has to do with magnetism and repelling properties." said the hooded man as he reappeared, standing on the tallest pine tree surrounding the rain-soaked field.

"Someone did their homework well this past week, but knowing that will only make you respect the might of my determination to capture, or as I would prefer, kill you." said Tetsuga aloud.

"Then let's bring out a little fear in your heart, Dead Corpse Technique!" yelled Kabuto as four corpses suddenly appeared in front of Tetsuga, all with explosive tags attached to them.

"Huh, one of those corpses is Greshem's, what is this, it is not Edo Tensei?" asked Tetsuga with confusion.

The corpses all ran towards Tetsuga from different directions, as they all let out a ghastly moan as they closed in on the bewildered man.

"Attack Prevention Technique." said Tetsuga quietly as he seemed to merge into the ground and disappear from sight.

"Not bad, but I can still sense your location from here, and I know that you plan to emerge from the very tree that I stand on." said the hooded man as he jumped off of the pine tree just in time to avoid Tetsuga's attack, landing right beside his three summoned kamikaze corpses.

"I see you have some wits about you, but tell me who you really are now, I am not just doing this on orders anymore, I am genuinely curious now." said Tetsuga with a slightly calmer tone.

"The mind's curiosity to learn things that are still unknown to them, it is a driving force that lays within the subconscious of all man, and even those under order of Lazarus are no different." said the man as he began to remove his hood.

"You have a way with words that rivals Hirudeguarn's, hehehe, I always enjoyed being in the presence of another scholar like myself." said Tetsuga as he mockingly gave a handclap towards the man.

The man removed his hood, revealing medium-length ash-gray hair, a round pair of glasses, and black, onyx eyes, with a seemingly sad expression on his face.

"Huh, I know you... you are Kabuto, Kabuto Yakushi." said Tetsuga with a shocked tone as he stepped back a little.

"I am glad to be able to introduce myself under such civil circumstances, and now that you know of my identity, you will now desire a reason for me being here, I can read almost anyone like a book." said Kabuto as he deactivated his Dead Corpse Jutsu and stand across Tetsuga as the rain appeared to die down, revealing a starry sky, with an aura of green radiance covering the sky above their location.

"Well Kabuto, I had no idea that you were the one lurking around here, and you are right I do desire an explanation as to why you have decided to come here, despite already knowing of the operations of Lazarus." said Tetsuga to Kabuto with a demanding demeanor about him.

"Alright, alright, I will play nice for now, but later on when you become my captive, I will have a field day with you." said Kabuto as he walked a little quicker towards Testuga.

"I am ready for whatever you have, but I still expect an answer as to why you are here." said Tetsuga as he was able to remain perfectly calm.

"Then maybe you can come with me quietly." said Kabuto as he appeared behind Tetsuga, with the other Kabuto walking in front of him tearing the fake skin off, revealing itself to be another corpse.

"What, how did I not pick that up, hehehe, psyche." said Tetsuga as he turned into an Earth clone, reappearing in a safe distance behind the real Kabuto.

"Good good, at least I have a knowledgeable captive on my hands, and now to put this little play into motion." said Kabuto as he began to from a series of hand signs with an emotionless expression on his face.

 **-To be continued next time with Chapter 039...-**


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